


The Trail Ends Here

by bethatspark



Category: RPS, Supernatural
Genre: Animal Abuse, Implied Child Abuse, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-17
Updated: 2013-07-17
Packaged: 2017-12-20 12:17:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 26,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/887173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bethatspark/pseuds/bethatspark
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jared Padalecki grew up with his father, far away from his mother's stable and her influence. After she dies and he gets into trouble at school and with his horse, Stranger, his father decides it's time that he learns more about her and the program she ran. Jared wasn't planning on making new friends or discovering Jensen, a troubled child who ran away and grew into a talented horseman. He definitely wasn't planning on Jensen's past catching up with them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Trail Ends Here

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to yanyann07, my wonderful artist, or masja1317, my talented beta. I couldn't have done this without them. Art is at http://yanyann.livejournal.com/11688.html. Part of the SPN-J2 2013 Big Bang. Also, the formatting may be weird. I'm just trying to get the hang of AO3. Thanks!

Some say the world will end in fire,  
Some say in ice.  
From what I’ve tasted of desire  
I hold with those who favor fire.  
Fire and Ice, Robert Frost 

The light that falls through the clouds during a snowfall is different than light during any other time of the year. It’s cold and by no right should be as bright as it is, but it still illuminates the world like nothing else. It glimmers off each facet of the landscape as it dulls the harshness of reality. It’s not like summer sunlight, with a golden glow, or the blue tinge that’s associated with the night that never truly sinks away during the dry winter. It’s a grey that is reminiscent of your first sip of whiskey as the burn in your throat fades away. The light during a snowstorm is bright enough to cast shadows and questioning glances into your past but sharp enough to keep the memories at bay. The snowflakes that accompany the light don’t fall, however. They float. 

It was snowing when Jared Padalecki first rode into Hinckley, Utah on a huge black horse that was entirely too large for the young man’s lanky frame. He caused a stir immediately among those watching, with his slanted green eyes and dimples that were evident even when he wasn’t smiling. He rode alone down Main Street like a cowboy, plucked from the scenes of an old movie, and rode right back out the other side of town without a single sidelong glance. The townspeople watched him as he sauntered out on the back of a night-dark horse, and after a brief and flurried interest meeting centered around his abrupt arrival and departure, decided that he wouldn’t be staying around long. 

They were wrong. Jared continued down Main Street for a long, cold while before finally turning left. He rode on until he reached the Hinckley City Cemetery. He dismounted, not bothering to tie his huge creature to anything, and pushed open the rusty iron gates, which were dusted with a soft covering of fluffy white snow. He walked slowly through the crumbling headstones as melancholy whisperings of wind whistled through the trees. His horse followed a few paces behind him, ears pricked forward and long head down. Jared stopped and knelt in front of one of the newer tombstones, knees sinking into the wet snow. He reached out, fingertips brushing the white powder off of the face of the marble, and read the name engraved aloud quietly. “Sharon,” he whispered. He sat for a moment longer, his black beauty huffing warm air onto his ears and ruffling his hair, and then stood up, smacking the snow off his pants. “Let’s go, Stranger,” he said, and ran a gentle hand down the horse’s sooty face. Stranger blew air through his nose at Jared and whinnied, and then followed the tall boy back up the path they had come on down. Once outside, Jared mounted and urged Stranger into a light canter. Within minutes of their departure, the snow had covered their tracks, and all evidence that Jared had visited his mother’s grave had been erased.

Jensen Ackles lived with an old British teacher named Sebastian in an older farmhouse with a stable that was nicer than their home behind it. A sign arched over their half-mile long driveway announcing, “The Trail Ends Here- Behavioral Therapy Facility.” A smaller sign hanging beneath that read, “Enrolling March-October.” When the dirt drive wasn’t caked in snow, hundreds of hoof-prints were stamped into the ground. Right now, though, the only hoof marks visible were those of Stranger, who plodded slowly up the road with a wind-burnt and possibly hypothermic Jared on his back. The boy’s hazel eyes were slipping shut, and both reins were clasped loosely in his left hand. His right hand was propped on his denim-clad thigh, barely supporting him enough to keep him upright. Up ahead, the lights in the farmhouse were blazing with warmth. Jared could see two men sitting across from each other, through a large bay window that framed a kitchen. Somehow, he managed to stay on Stranger’s broad back all the way up the drive.  
“Thank you,” he murmured to his horse as he dragged his leg over Stranger’s rump, and slid off the saddle into a human puddle on the front porch. “So cold…” Stranger neighed at him, nudging the lanky boy out of his way, and then delicately stepped onto the porch. The horse kicked his front hoof out at the heavy wooden door, and then turned to look down at his rider.  
“You’re so damn smart,” Jared laughed tiredly from the ground. Stranger stomped again, pawing at the worn wood. Voices came from inside, indistinct and full of life. The door swung open with a creak and light flooded onto the porch, illuminating the frozen eighteen-year-old and his horse.  
“What the hell?” A polite British voice asked to the air.  
“Who the hell…?” A gruff American one replied. Jared looked up at the two men framed in the entry and tried to carve a smile onto his stony cheeks.  
“I’m Jared,” he tried, but it came out mumbled and unintelligible. The two men standing looked at each other.  
“I’ll take him inside. Want to stable up this beauty?” The older man with the accent suggested. The younger nodded and ducked back inside. He reappeared a moment later, tugging on heavy rubber boots and a thick jacket.  
“Come on,” he urged, and rubbed a hand down Stranger’s neck. Stranger just watched the man calmly as he unhooked the bags clipped to the saddle and tossed them inside, and followed when the man took hold of his reins and led him down the steps. The older man pulled Jared to his feet, where he swayed back and forth but remained upright.  
“Let’s go in, shall we?” The man asked. Jared just looked at him. The man sighed and tugged Jared into the warmth of the inner hall. The floors were stone, the walls were paneled wood, and carpets were spread haphazardly everywhere. Jared stumbled a little on one, but regained his balance as the heat thawed his muscles. The older man, whose blonde hair and blue eyes gave him the appearance of a much younger person despite the faint wrinkles etched into his face, stood back and watched him for a second as Jared took in his surroundings. A contemplative look crossed his face, but he wiped it away for the moment.  
“My name is Sebastian, but you may call me Seb,” he offered after a moment.  
“I’m Jared. Nice to meet you.” Jared stood for a moment, clearly uncomfortable, until Sebastian cleared his throat. “Well, we just started dinner. Why don’t you join us?”  
Jared nodded gratefully. “I’d be much obliged.”

The two men sat down, Seb with a glass of wine and Jared with a plate heaped with starches. The boy dug in hungrily while Sebastian watched him with interest. The only noise was the rattle of Jared’s plate against the table and the gentle ring of china as Sebastian set his glass down. The kitchen was cozy, with mismatched lamps on every horizontal surface and notes or pictures of kids and horses on every vertical one. The younger man returned from the outside within ten minutes, a light dusting of snow melting in his short hair, which stuck straight up despite the water in it. He scrubbed a calloused hand through it and stuck the other hand out to Jared.  
“Hi. I’m Jensen.” Jared dropped his knife and fork and stood, swallowing noisily in an attempt to clear his mouth of food. He shook Jensen’s hand firmly.  
“Nice to meet you. I’m Jared.” Jensen nodded. He swung a chair out from under the table and sat, the heel of one boot hooked casually on a rung. Jared returned to his meal.  
“So I don’t mean to be rude, and it’s nice of you to join us for dinner and all, but what are you doing here?” Jensen looked straight at Jared, green eyes watching Jared carefully. Jared coughed and his face grew bright red.  
“I thought my dad called ahead- I’m supposed to be here for behavioral therapy. Or something like that.” As he spoke, his tone grew from respectful and eager, as it had been before, to an attempt at a sneer and he leaned back in his chair, trying to appear larger than he was (which was rather large, regardless). Jared’s eyes tightened, as if daring one of the men to challenge him. Jensen cocked an eyebrow.  
“Is that right?” Jensen drawled. His eyes narrowed slightly at the insolence, but he didn’t change his posture.  
“Oh, drat, I’d forgotten. Jensen, his father did call. This is Sharon’s son.” Sebastian interjected. Jared inclined his head.  
“Really? Oh. Nice horse you got there, by the way.” At the mention of his horse, the arrogant look wiped itself off Jared’s face, to be replaced by pride.  
“His name’s Stranger. Isn’t he a beauty?” Jared smiled. Jensen nodded.  
“Stranger? Odd name for a horse.” Sebastian commented.  
“My dad named him. We’ve had him for as long as I can remember.” Jared shrugged. “He said I could bring him here and stable him, because I couldn’t take the car and Dad couldn’t get off work to take me here.” Something didn’t sit right with Jensen about that statement. Jared was here to be worked with, but was given the freedom to ride here by himself?  
“If you’re such a bad kid that you need to be here, why not just run off? Why actually come all the way here?” Jensen asked brusquely, leaning forward. Jared’s eyebrows drew together, and then sprung apart. The idea clearly had never occurred to him.  
“I’m not that bad, honestly,” he protested. “I started skipping school and being a general pain-in-the-ass to authority, and then I… yeah, so my dad thought it would be a good idea for me to come here.” Jensen’s eyes narrowed at the obvious omission but let it slide.  
“Why the rebellion?” Sebastian asked.  
“I’m a teenager. What more can you expect?” Jared flicked his long hair out of his eyes. The answer rolled off his tongue like he’d given it a thousand times before, but it didn’t sound true coming from the young man with the most earnest eyes Jensen had ever seen.  
“More than that, from a boy whose mother is Sharon Padalecki.” Sebastian shot back. Jared looked at him with shock and a little hurt on his face.  
“But that’s why you’re here, I suppose. It’s all for the best. Shall we clean up?” Sebastian stood abruptly, chair grinding back against the wooden floor. There really wasn’t much to clean up, but both Sebastian and Jensen watched as Jared obediently cleaned up what was left of his meal and the other plates on the table as well. Jensen raised his eyebrows as if to say, “Definitely a troublemaker.” Sebastian shook his head, rolling his eyes. When Jared was done, he stood and looked at the two older men for direction. Sebastian smiled at him and led him back to the main entrance. He indicated first to Jared’s bags, then the large wooden staircase.  
“Shall we go see where you’ll be sleeping?” 

Jared followed Jensen and Sebastian upstairs to a long hallway lit with more eccentric lamps. There were six doors that Jared could see, and more around the corner. Three of the doors were shut, whiteboards with names written on them hanging on the front, but the others that stood open revealed sparse but comfortable bedrooms. Jensen led Jared to an open room and stepped inside, flipping a light switch on the wall.  
“This is your new room,” Jensen said. “If you need anything, just holler. Seb is the room closest to the stairs, I’m next to him, and Genevieve is next to me. She’s not here right now, but you’ll meet her soon.” He and Seb left, allowing Jared to get acquainted with his new room. He sat heavily on the bed and dropped his bags to the floor. He noted that the room, while bare, was nice. More lamps were situated on his bedside table and on a desk in the corner, flush against a window. “How many different types of lamps exist in Hinckley?” Jared wondered. Several pictures of horses decorated the walls, and upon closer inspection all included the same woman. She had long wavy hair the same color as Jared’s, and the same eye shape. “Mom,” he muttered. “Nice to finally meet you.”  
He stripped down to boxers and climbed into bed, flipping the lights off. His eyes slid shut and he curled deep into the heavy comforter on the bed, slipping off into sleep.

Downstairs, the conversation between Jensen and Sebastian was centered on the farm’s newest arrival.  
“Something’s weird with his story, Seb. I don’t know what it is, but I’m missing something.”  
“I know, Jensen.” Sebastian sighed. “His father told me more than Jared did. The guys at school gave him a hard time. For what, Gerald didn’t say. At first Jared dealt with it, but then it started to involve Stranger. Jared and that horse have a profound bond, one that’s been cemented since he was born. But some boys went after the horse, and Jared went berserk on them. His father wants him here so he can be away from that situation and at the same time learn more about his mother.”  
“What do you mean, they went after his horse?” Jensen rubbed a hand across his eyes.  
“Jared was in the barn late one night and some kids snuck in. I don’t know what they were planning, but they had knives and spray paint with them. Between that horse and that boy, there were four broken arms and innumerable broken fingers and toes among three kids.”  
“I would have done the same thing.” Jensen offered, weaving his fingers together in front of him on the table.  
“I would have too, but the town didn’t appreciate it. They think Jared’s dangerous.” Sebastian laughed a little. “Sharon told me stories of how Jared was when he was a wee little boy. He refused to pick flowers because they would die. But anyway, now he’s here. And we’re going to keep him here for as long as he wants to be.”

When Jared woke up the next morning, cool sunlight was streaming through the window into his room. He sat up, bleary-eyed, and rubbed a hand through his rumpled hair. The inviting aroma of coffee and bacon wafted up from downstairs and enticed him to the kitchen after he got dressed. He walked downstairs in jeans and a flannel button-down to find Jensen in the kitchen, singing unashamedly and wearing a pink apron.  
“Good morning,” Jared said. Jensen looked over at him and nodded, not missing a beat in his morning performance of Aerosmith. Jared smiled and padded barefoot to the cabinets, rummaging around until he resurfaced with a chipped ceramic mug. He poured himself a steaming cup from the carafe on a counter, doctoring it with cream and sugar, and sat at the table, watching Jensen’s back as he busied himself around the stove. Jared hadn’t noticed the night before, but Jensen was absolutely covered with light brown freckles. They peeked out from over the collar of his t-shirt and the tie of the apron. Sebastian walked in then, accompanied by a small woman with long dark hair and a big smile.  
“Good morning, boys.” Sebastian said. “Jared, this is Genevieve Cortese. She’s here on bad behavior as well.”  
“Nice to meet you,” she chirped innocently, but her dark eyes shone with mischief and she didn’t seem to mind Jared knowing that she was here because she was a wild child. In fact, she seemed a little proud.  
“Likewise,” he said. “I’m Jared.” She smiled and poured herself a cup of coffee, provoking teasing from Sebastian and Jensen. “That’s your third! How much coffee do you drink a day, Gen?” Jensen laughed.  
“Not enough!” Genevieve grumbled, burying her nose in the rising steam. Sebastian sat down at the table and tugged his boots off, tossing them into a corner. He turned to face Jared and clasped his hands on the wooden surface.  
“So the way things work around here isn’t difficult. You wake up early. You work on the farm, either fixing things, breaking things down, or working with the horses all day long, and then we go to bed early. This process repeats until you leave or you die. Sounds fair?”  
“Sure,” Jared said, hesitantly. Sebastian and Jensen looked at each other for a moment then burst out laughing.  
“That was a joke. We don’t work you that hard!” Sebastian said. “You work in the mornings, then in the afternoons you read or write or paint or whatever it is you want to do for therapeutic purposes.”  
“But you’re going to spend a lot of time with your horse, probably, right?” Jensen asked. Jared sat ramrod-straight in his chair, alarm lighting his eyes.  
“Stranger! How is he? Is he okay?”  
“He’s taken care of. We fed him this morning. He’s stabled up, nice and warm. He’s a beautiful boy, by the way.” Genevieve said.  
“Thank you,” Jared said sincerely.  
“We figured you could use the sleep after your arrival last night,” Sebastian said. “He’s a tough old man. He was fine.” Jared nodded. The conversation continued, around Stranger and the other horses in the barn, like Genevieve’s Lion, until Jensen plunked a large plate of bacon, eggs, and toast into the center of the table and commanded, “Eat!”

After finishing breakfast and digging up his dirty boots from the mess he’d already begun to form in his room, Jared followed Sebastian and Jensen out to the large barn behind the farmhouse.  
“We figured you could work with the horses today,” Jensen said. “If you’re not opposed.”  
“No, that’s fine!” Jared agreed. Jensen led him through the center aisle while Sebastian went to check on other matters and named the horses off with an easy familiarity.  
“That’s Gen’s Lion, don’t mess with her, she’s evil. The rest are named after angels; Gabriel, Michael, Raphael, and this white son of a bitch is Lucifer. He hasn’t been entirely broken in yet, and probably never will be. He’s the meanest horse in the barn.” Lucifer tossed his magnificent white mane and snorted derisively at the humans who had stopped in front of his stall. Jared looked up at him passively, showing neither timidity nor aggression. After a few seconds, Lucifer turned his tail to them and continued with his breakfast. Jared and Jensen walked further down the barn, where a familiar head poked itself out from over a stall door.  
“Stranger!” Jared exclaimed happily. He strode to his horse and ran comforting hands over his face and neck. “Hi, you. How are you?” Stranger nuzzled contentedly at him, blowing affectionate horse kisses on his cheeks. A quick overlook of his keeping convinced Jared that Jensen had taken good care of his horse last night. He had been fed, and there was fresh straw on the floor. A full water bucket hung on the wall.  
“Thanks for bringing him here last night,” Jared offered.  
“Not a problem. Stranger is the most well-behaved horse I’ve ever met.” Jared nodded in agreement. Jensen led him away from the stalls down a side hallway, lined with smaller rooms that contained tack, feed, and other supplies.  
“Today, you’re going to start small. Mucking stalls, taking horses to pasture, food, water, and the like. Just until you get used to all the animals here.” Jensen pointed into a room filled with buckets labeled by horse, each with its own assortment of combs, brushes, or picks. There were plenty of spares, too, so Jared wouldn’t have to run back to the house for Stranger’s tools.  
“You can start with Stranger, if you’d prefer, but all the animals but Lucifer and Lion should be groomed. Then take them out through that door to the pasture and clean their stalls and leave some hay in them,” he pointed to a door opposite from the one they came in through. “And let them play for a while. They don’t need supervision. Also, Lucifer isn’t going with them.”  
“Who takes care of Lucifer, then?” Jared asked curiously.  
“I do,” Jensen said, pride and modesty warring for dominance. “We have an uneasy respect. But he doesn’t try to kill me, and I don’t hurt him. It works.”  
“What made him like that?” Jared’s heart hurt for the horse.  
“We think he was abused by a previous owner, but we’re not really sure. He was found wandering around Hinckley and someone brought him here.” Jensen looked sad, but wiped the emotion off his face. “Get started then,” he instructed, and walked away from Jared to the other end of the hall. Jared only had time to notice the way Jensen’s legs bent away from each other in a bow-shape before he had ducked into another room. Someone’s spent too much time on a horse, he thought to himself, then grabbed a curry-comb and some brushes and got to work.

Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel all behaved well for Jared. He was easy and unassuming around them, allowing them to sniff his hands all over and get to know him before he barged into their spaces. Gabriel, a small Palomino, blew hay all over Jared the second he turned his back to get another brush, and Michael just watched him with big brown eyes. Michael and Raphael were both large bays, Michael with a distinct white blaze down his nose and Raphael with a star. Stranger was glad to be in the company of his human again. Lucifer hung his head over the half-door to his stall and watched Jared walk the horses out to the paddock with disdain. As Jared headed back down the hallway to the supply rooms to find a pitchfork and a wheelbarrow, he heard heeled boots tapping down the aisle. When he reappeared with his tools in tow, Genevieve was sitting on the door of Lion’s stall.  
“Hi there,” she said. “I heard you’re working out here today.”  
“That’s right,” Jared answered as he came closer. “Shoveling shit. The usual.” She laughed; dark hair tied back shining under the bright lights of the barn.  
“So what are you stuck here for?” Genevieve asked.  
“Everyone’s subtlety needs some work,” Jared grumped. “But I’m here for being generally disrespectful and a delinquent.” He considered her for a second as she watched him with warm brown eyes that harbored no judgment, and decided to trust her. “And I beat three kids up once.”  
She nodded in approval. “I’m here for stealing. It started with small things but then I stole a car. So my mom didn’t want me getting into any more trouble.”  
“Why did you take a car?” Jared’s eyebrows were sky-high.  
“It was pretty, I wanted it, and I have no self-control.” She shrugged nonchalantly. “I like it here though, and I’m not leaving anytime soon. Why did you beat up three kids?”  
He tried for an easy-going tone and failed miserably. “They tried to hurt my horse.” Jared’s voice dropped dangerously low. Genevieve’s eyes widened, but she laughed a second later.  
“I like you, Jared. I hope you stay.” She hopped off the door, clipped a lead line onto Lion’s halter, and pulled her out into the hall. “Want to muck this stall, too?”  
“Dude!” Jared protested as Lion flicked her tail into his face. “Do it yourself!” He yelled down the hallway at Genevieve’s retreating back. She made no indication that she heard him, but Lion looked back over her shoulder.  
“Fine,” Jared grumbled to himself, and set to work.

By the time he was done, his shoulders were tight with use and sweat dripped off his nose, despite the chilly temperature. He had brought all the horses back in and copped a seat on the door of Stranger’s stall, rubbing his cold hands through the horse’s thick mane.  
“Howdy, stranger,” Jensen drawled from behind him. Both the boy and the horse looked over at him.  
“Oops,” he laughed. “Both of you, then. Are you ever coming back inside?” He directed at Jared.  
“At some point. I lost track of time.” Jared admitted.  
“It’s lunchtime. Come eat,” Jensen invited, offering a mocking arm to Jared. He smiled at Jensen but didn’t take it, hopping off the door and following Jensen back to the house.

Inside, Genevieve and Sebastian were already eating across from each other. A huge, steaming bowl of something that looked and smelled like pasta with red sauce was in the middle of the table, and cups and silverware were set down messily around it. Sebastian kicked a chair out from under the table and looked pointedly from Jared to it, indicating that he should sit, but Jensen swiped it first.  
“Rude,” Genevieve said, tomato sauce staining her upper lip.  
“Like you’ve never stolen something before,” Jensen shot back.  
“You’re one to judge,” She rolled her eyes, but Jensen blushed. Jared sat down in a chair next to her, on Jensen’s other side, and pulled a bowl of noodles towards him. The silverware didn’t match, and neither did the plates, but Jared thought the effect was homey and warm. Jared, looking carefully over everything in the kitchen with interest, glanced down from the pictures on the wall to find Jensen watching him unabashedly. His huge green eyes, prominent in his freckled face, soaked in Jared like a sponge. Jared’s face burned under the scrutiny of Jensen’s gaze, and focused back down on his lunch.  
“How did you like everything?” Sebastian finally asked, breaking the comfortable silence.  
“It was great!” Jared said quickly. “The horses are great and didn’t give me any trouble. It’s been a while since I mucked that many stalls, though.”  
“I hope you didn’t have to clean too many,” Sebastian said, glaring at Gen.  
She smiled innocently. “That would be a shame, wouldn’t it?”  
Jared rolled his eyes. “I didn’t mind it.”  
“Good,” Jensen said. “Because you’re going to be doing that a lot. And, also, unless you had something else to do this afternoon, I want you to come with me.” Sebastian looked sharply at Jensen.  
“Jen-,” he started, but Jensen cut him off.  
“I just want to see something.” He said calmly. Jared looked from Jensen to Sebastian, trying to ascertain what he was going to be doing, then at Genevieve. She shrugged, clearly not knowing either. Jared stood, rinsed out his bowl at the sink, and looked at Jensen. “Sounds good to me,” Jared said.  
“Let’s go, then.” Jensen smiled, eyes crinkling, and led Jared back towards the barn.

“So how old are you?” Jensen asked as they walked.  
“I just turned eighteen. What about yourself?”  
“Twenty-two.” Jensen led them down the aisle again, but stopped in front of Lucifer’s stall. “This is going to be a test, but it doesn’t matter if you pass or fail. I just want to see how he’ll react to you.” Jared looked at Jensen quickly.  
“This horse was literally named after the Devil and you want to test him on me?” Jensen snorted at the panic beginning to grow in Jared’s voice.  
“Oh, please. I’ll be right there. It’ll be fine.” He grabbed a lead line off a hook outside the stall and ducked inside. He started to murmur softly to Lucifer, who after a few seconds allowed him to clip the line to his halter and lead him to the aisle. Jared backed away slowly as Lucifer passed, but Lucifer didn’t spare him a glance. Jensen led Lucifer out into an empty paddock and turned him loose. Lucifer’s white coat gleamed in the cold sun and his mane and tail bounced behind him as he broke into a loose canter. A grid of scars that Jared hadn’t noticed before was laced over his flank.  
“Are those from whoever owned him before?” Jared asked quietly, nodding to the scarring. Jensen jerked his head down in a stiff nod, lips pressed tightly together as his eyes followed Lucifer around the pasture. He turned to Jared and offered him the line.  
“I want you to try to catch him.”  
“Are you kidding me?” Jared balked. Jensen rolled his eyes.  
“I’ll be here if things go south. You seem to be good with the horses. I want to see if that applies to all of them.” Jared took a deep breath and grabbed the line from Jensen’s hand. He had done this with nervous and skittish horses before: he could do it again.  
“Fine.” Jared bit nervously, and pushed himself off the fence he was leaning on. He walked slowly to the center of the pasture, shaking the tension from his shoulders and lifting his chin high. Don’t show fear, he reminded himself. Jensen watched the tall boy as he turned in a circle, watching the horse trotting around the outskirts of the paddock. He ran the long cord through his palms and bunched it in his left fist, holding the clip in his right. Lucifer didn’t even look at him as Jared started to speak quietly. “Hey, boy, I’m not going to hurt you,” he said softly. “I’m going to be your friend…” Lucifer’s ears pricked towards Jared, but he didn’t stop moving. Jensen jumped onto the fence and sat, hooking his boots into the rail beneath him. Jared’s long hair caught the sun, much in the same way that Lucifer’s did. There was a coltish grace in the way Jared moved that reminded Jensen of a young horse who had just grown into his legs. Jared walked towards where Lucifer had slowed and now stood, shifting his weight in the thick grass. As Jared took a step closer, Lucifer took one back. “Hey, baby,” Jared smiled at the horse. “It’ll be okay. I promise. I’m not going to hurt you like whoever did that to you did.” His eyes held a sincere promise of kindness that shone like the sun in the night. Huge, liquid dark eyes met hazel ones that showed no fear or anger. Lucifer nickered quietly, but didn’t step back when Jared started moving slowly towards him again. Jensen could see Jared’s lips moving, but couldn’t hear what he said. Lucifer’s ears were turned towards Jared wholeheartedly. Jensen found himself praying that Jared was able to befriend Lucifer. Besides Jensen, the only other person that Lucifer had genuinely trusted, and the only one in the world Lucifer had allowed to ride him, was Jared’s mother, Sharon. Jensen hoped that Jared would have the same bizarre gift that Sharon had. Horses had trusted her implicitly- without question, no matter their background. She would take the time needed, but by the end they would love her. Jared was within ten feet of Lucifer now, and his lips were still moving slowly. Five feet away from Lucifer, Jared offered the long rope out to the white horse. Lucifer whinnied nervously, but still didn’t step away. Jared froze with his hands outstretched, rope hanging slackly from them. Genevieve and Sebastian walked up quietly behind Jared.  
“Is it working? This is the worst idea you’ve ever had,” Sebastian said, eyes trained on the space between the odd pair in the pasture. Jensen just shrugged towards the boy and the horse, where they played an intricate game of chess on the grassy board. Lucifer stomped at the ground, but didn’t retreat as Jared took another cautious step towards him. Jared was so close that with another two steps he could have reached out and ran a hand along Lucifer’s quivering neck. Lucifer looked at Jared, the careful boy with the gentle hands, and stepped towards him. Jensen heard Genevieve gasp softly behind him, and Seb’s grip on the fence tightened until there was no blood left in his knuckles. Lucifer ran his nose along the line, smelling the fiber, and whuffing over Jared’s palms. Jared waited a second as Lucifer drank him in then lifted the clip end of the rope higher, asking for permission from the horse. Lucifer inclined his head to Jared’s level after a beat, giving his assent. Jared clipped the rope to Lucifer’s halter carefully, then ran a reverent hand over Lucifer’s neck. Lucifer dipped his head to Jared’s, huffing on Jared’s face. Jared rubbed Lucifer’s nose, the other hand coming up to caress his silky ears. Lucifer kept an eye on the rope still in Jared’s hand, but didn’t shy away. Jared slid a hand to where the rope was attached to the halter and turned to Jensen to lead Lucifer in. His surprise at seeing Genevieve and Sebastian was evident on his face, but he stayed calm and clicked his tongue to the horse, which followed him to the assembled crowd with grace. Sebastian’s face was blank, with only his raised eyebrows showing his astonishment. Gen’s eyes were wide, but a smile cracked her face in two. Jensen’s eyes were crinkled in a huge grin, and as Jared neared him he ran a hand over Lucifer’s neck.  
“You’re such a good boy, Luci,” he cooed. He glanced at Jared with appreciation. “You’re not so bad yourself. Where did you learn to do that?” Jared shrugged. “There were some difficult horses at the barn where I stabled Stranger before. I guess I just picked it up.” Jensen nodded pensively, then glanced back to the barn. “Want to lead him in?”  
Jared smiled happily and looked at Lucifer, who looked back. They walked back together, as in step as a two-legged creature and a four-legged one could, with Genevieve tagging along on Jared’s other side. Jensen moved to follow, but Sebastian clamped a vise-like grip on his upper arm.  
“Let me guess. You didn’t think to warn Jared that Lucifer would probably have kicked him in the face with both hooves if that had gone wrong.” Sebastian’s voice was hard.  
“I knew that Luci wouldn’t. I would have stepped in, and I knew that Lucifer would trust Jared. He has the same gift Sharon had.” Sebastian shook his head in mild disgust, but let Jensen go.  
“You’re an idiot.” Sebastian said. Jensen smiled widely at the other man.  
“I know.”

Lucifer huffed softly on Jared’s arm as he unclipped him in the safety of his stall.  
“You’re not so evil, are you?” Jared laughed. Lucifer glared at him, as if he understood the slight Jared had made on his character, but just turned his tail to Jared and dipped his head into his water bucket. Jared let himself out and started to walk back to the house with Gen.  
“So your mom used to ride Lucifer,” Genevieve tried casually. Jared looked at her sharply. “Jensen didn’t tell me that.” She shrugged.  
“She did. But after she died, Lucifer didn’t let anyone near him for a while. The only reason he lets Jensen take care of him is because when Sharon found out that she was sick, she started making Jensen take care of him with her. So that when she died, Lucifer wouldn’t be totally alone.” Jared looked down at his feet. He had grown up his entire life without his mother, and knew next to nothing about her.  
“She was a good woman, Jared.” Genevieve said softly. Jared looked down at her and nodded, appreciative of anything she could tell him about Sharon. They reached the house, and he pushed the back door open for her and followed her into the warmth.

Jared, Jensen, Genevieve, and Sebastian were all seated in a common room around a blazing fireplace by the time the sun went down. Genevieve was curled into an armchair with a book on her lap. Sebastian and Jensen were playing cards on a coffee table, and Jared was seated on the floor, leaning against a couch and staring into the fire. His shoulders were sore like they hadn’t been in so long, and his palms burned from the calluses forming. Despite his muscular aches, he was content. The last few weeks he had spent in his apartment with his dad had been laced with tension and regret. He hadn’t been allowed to go back to school after whaling on the children of prominent citizens, and his father hadn’t wanted to leave him alone. Jared had escaped as frequently as possible to the barn, but even some of the hands there had begun to avoid him, especially those who had seen him and Stranger fighting together as though they had been born to it. He had been relieved when he came home from the stables one day and his father had sat him down and told him where he was to be going. And now he was here. Genevieve licked a finger and turned a page as Jensen cursed Sebastian for beating him in yet another round of cards. Jared smiled to himself at the comfortable warmth that permeated the room. It was obvious that these three cared for each other, despite Genevieve’s past transgressions and whatever Jensen’s reasons were, and they had welcomed Jared to their home with open arms. It was only a few minutes later that Jared dropped off to sleep, right there on the floor. 

When he woke up three hours later, Jensen was asleep on the couch above him and the fire had burned down to the ashes. The air was cold and the night outside was dark as pitch. Jared sat up and stretched, feeling the kinks in his neck work themselves out. His shoulders pinched as he pushed himself to his feet and looked down on the man lying on the couch. Jensen’s face was unlined as he dreamt, the corners of his eyes wrinkled by squinting at the sun smoothed out. He snuffled and rolled, shoving a hand under the blanket serving as his pillow. Jared watched him, debating whether or not to wake him. As it turned out, he didn’t have to decide. A clock chimed the hour of one and Jensen sat up as it bonged, running a hand through his tousled hair. He mumbled unintelligibly and looked up at Jared.  
“What are you doing?” Jared didn’t have an answer that didn’t sound bizarre. He shrugged. Jensen looked at him oddly, but let it go and swung his bowlegs to the floor.  
“Go to bed, then, Sasquatch.” Jared turned obediently and trotted up the stairs, Jensen following behind after putting out the fire entirely. Jared reached the top of the staircase and turned to Jensen suddenly.  
“How did you come to be here?” Jared was thinking about Jensen’s reaction to being accused of stealing things by Genevieve earlier that day.  
“You really want to know?” Jensen asked slowly, a slight country accent permeating his query. Jared nodded.  
“I stole three horses from an old drunk asshole in Texas. Ran with them up to here. You know them as Gabriel, Michael, and Raphael.”  
Jared’s eyes widened. “Why?” He asked softly.  
Jensen rubbed a hand across the back of his neck. “That’s a long story for another time,” the older man said, looking up at Jared.  
“Another time, then,” Jared insisted. Jensen, with his green eyes and freckles and worn hands, was infinitely interesting to Jared, and he couldn’t put his finger on why. Jensen narrowed his eyes at Jared and turned to his bedroom.  
“Good night, Jared.” The door swung shut quietly behind him, leaving a hallway empty of anyone but Jared. He turned and walked to his own room, wondering what it was about Jensen that made Jared want to know more about him. Jared kicked off his jeans and slid into bed, thinking about how many freckles Jensen really had, and how long it would take to count them.

Jared awoke the next morning from dreams of his mother riding Lucifer and Jensen running next to them, yelling, “I want to see if you can catch them!” But he had been unable to keep up and had stood alone in the end, watching his mother, Jensen, and Lucifer disappear into the distance. He shook the unsettling dream from his mind and pulled on clean clothes before going downstairs. He met Gen on the landing, her hair pulled back into a messy bun, and walked with her to the kitchen. It was Seb cooking this morning, with eggs frying on the stove, and Jensen sitting in a chair with his head as far into his coffee cup as it would go.  
“Morning,” he mumbled as they entered. Gen shot him a look.  
“Someone’s got a hangover.” She accused lightly, but he shook his head.  
“Luci got out late last night,” Jensen said, running a hand over his shadowed eyes. “I went to go track him down and it only took forever.”  
“How’d he get out?” Jared asked. He flashed back to his dream, with Lucifer running away from him, but pulled his mind away from it and convinced himself that it must have been a coincidence.  
“I have no idea. That horse is wicked. He’s fine though.” Jensen took a deep pull on his coffee and sighed. “Jared, there’s a new horse coming in today. Want to try and befriend her?” Jared nodded vigorously. It would sure beat mucking out more stalls. 

A trailer pulled in the new horse at noon. The driver was a round, bearded man with a red face whose eyes filled with tears when he said good-bye to his speckled Appaloosa, Titania.  
“She was my daughter’s, but now that Lisa’s gone off to school I can’t take care of her with my job. I knew Sharon would’ve taken real good care of her. I’m sorry to hear that she’s passed.” Jensen nodded his head, and then indicated that he should hand Titania’s lead over to Jared. The man gave Jared a sidelong glance, but smiled when Titania snuffled over Jared’s shoulder.  
“Jared’s new here, but he’s great with the horses.” Jensen said. Jared blushed at the unexpected compliment, and guided Titania to the barn. The man and Jensen stayed behind to discuss Titania’s keeping. The grey and white horse looked curiously around, but seemed happy enough to be led by Jared to her own stall. She huffed over his hands and let him rub her down with a soft brush. Jared left her to her newly filled water buckets and went to say hello to the other horses. He had mucked some of the stalls earlier that day before Titania’s arrival, but Genevieve had been working in the barn as well. Lion was standing lazily next to Gen as she pitched the dirty straw from Lion’s stall into a wheelbarrow. They both looked up as Jared approached, rubbing his hands on his jeans. “Hey,” he smiled. She smiled back and propped herself up with her pitchfork.  
“How’s the new arrival?” Genevieve asked. She looked down the aisle, but Titania was invisible from where she stood.  
“Perfect,” Jared said. “Grey and white Appaloosa mare, well behaved too. Maybe she and Lion can be friends.” Genevieve laughed.  
“Lion doesn’t have friends, besides me,” Genevieve insisted. “She’s too grumpy for that. I’m surprised that she and Lucifer haven’t become friends yet.”  
“How did you end up with Lion if she’s so mean, anyway?” Jared asked. Genevieve shrugged. “Sharon had Lion here when I first arrived, and I started working with her and one day Sharon asked if I wanted to try riding her. I didn’t let her throw me off, which is why, I think, that she lets me ride her. I don’t let her boss me around. Apparently she was a princess at her last barn, but she started throwing little kids.”  
“Kind of like Jensen and Lucifer, yeah?” Jared smiled. From what he had heard and deduced, his mother was good at pairing horses with kids.  
“Exactly. Jensen doesn’t look it, but he can hold down Lucifer. Luci’s tried to take him out before but Jensen doesn’t take any of it.”  
“Take him out?” Jared asked.  
“Lucifer kicked a kid who was here in the face once. He tried it with Jensen but Jen can pretty much outrun him, and his ‘mean voice’ is terrifying.” Jared tried to picture smiling Jensen with his red, red lips being scary and failed.  
“What happened to the kid?”  
“Oh, he deserved it. Richard was teasing him, snapping a lead rope at the scars on his side, and lost a few teeth for his trouble. He had only been here a week or two. He’d never worked with horses, either. He was a real brat, but he was okay by the time he went home.”  
“How long have you been here?” Genevieve didn’t seem to mind all of Jared’s questions.  
“I’ve been here since I was sixteen. I’m nineteen, now. I could’ve left a while ago, but when I got back to school last May, no one would talk to me. I stole another car and drove back here and Sharon was happy to take me in again.”  
“How many kids have you seen come through here?” Jared was surprised that no one else was here at the moment.  
“I’ve seen around twenty kids, maybe? Most stay two or three months, usually summer break, and then go home. Jensen’s the longest. He ran here when he was twelve. That was ten years ago.”  
“Why is Jensen here, anyway?” Jared’s curiosity flared up, and the question slipped past his lips before he could stop himself. Genevieve’s face closed up immediately.  
“You’ll have to ask him yourself. It’s a very personal story. He’s the reason Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael are here, though. They came with him.” Genevieve forked a final mound of hay into her wheelbarrow and leaned the pitchfork carefully against the wall. “I have to go finish with this, and then I’m taking Lion out. I’ll see you later, Jared.” She lifted the wheelbarrow and rolled it away, Lion following her like an oversized puppy, although more Cerberus than Lassie. Jared’s head was spinning. What did Jensen do? He wondered. Jensen walked over at that moment, to where Jared was staring absentmindedly at the pitchfork Gen had left.  
“I’m pretty sure the pitchfork is going to win any staring contest you try to have,” Jensen teased. Jared looked up at him guiltily.  
“Sorry, Jensen. Is there something I’m supposed to be doing?”  
Jensen shook his head. “Titania seems to be settling in pretty well, and I think Gen and Seb took care of the rest of the horses.” Jensen paused for a moment, then added, “But if you want, we could go riding.” A burst of red highlighted the freckles on Jensen’s face for a split second, then faded. Jared’s stomach flipped uncomfortably. What the hell? He thought. It’s just a trail ride. He swallowed the butterflies in his throat and smiled.  
“Sure! That’d be fun.”  
Jensen nodded. “Then go tack up. I’m going to tell Seb where we’re going, and then we can be off.” He walked away, bowlegs swinging away from each other. Jared dragged a hand over his eyes. This is not going to develop into a crush, he told himself firmly. He had the sinking suspicion that he wasn’t going to be able to hold it off, despite his best efforts, and turned to get his saddle.  
“We’re going riding, Stranger!” Jared announced as he passed his horse’s stall. Stranger nickered at his human happily, and graciously lowered his head for Jared to slip the bit into his mouth when he came back with his tack. Jared’s saddle pad had been a gift from his father on his sixteenth birthday, and on one side, visible beneath the saddle, were the initials J.T.P. On the other side was embroidered ‘Stranger’. He threw the blanket over Stranger’s back and cinched the saddle itself snugly across Stranger’s belly. He led Stranger into the aisle and looked over for Jensen. Jensen was leading the Palomino, Gabriel, out of his stall. Jensen smiled at Jared, then as Stranger.  
“Your monster makes Gabriel look like a pony,” he teased. Jared patted Stranger’s neck affectionately.  
“I need a big horse! I’m too tall for normal horses,” he protested. Jensen laughed at him as he walked by. Jared followed him out of the barn. Jensen stuck a boot into his stirrup and swung himself into his saddle, waiting for Jared.  
“Where are we going?” Jared wondered out loud.  
“You’ll see. There are some pretty cool places around here.” Jensen set off at a light walk and Jared followed behind. Stranger shook his mane and looked back at Jared as if to say, “We’re finally going riding. It only took you long enough.” Gabriel broke into a light trot unasked, Jensen bouncing in the saddle before balancing himself in the stirrups and posting to Gabriel’s gait.  
“You little shit,” Jensen laughed.  
“You call your horse a little shit?” Jared asked, grinning.  
“He deserves it!” Jensen’s face was comical. Jared had never seen this side of Jensen. He’d only known Jensen for three days, and Jared had gotten the impression that Jensen was a pretty serious guy. But here he was, riding a horse that seemed to have a little wild streak in him, with a smile that threatened to take over his entire face. Jared liked this version of Jensen.  
“Come on!” Jensen encouraged, and led the way to a path that wound into the sparse forest surrounding the barn. 

They rode for twenty minutes in comfortable silence, finally emerging into a large clearing. The ring of trees was shaped like a coffee bean. The grass was long and waved in the winter wind, and the bare trees’ branches whispered to the air.  
“How’d you find this place?” Jared asked in wonder. The air was crisp and clean, and he had the distinct feeling that he and Jensen were the only two people left in the world.  
“Exploring,” Jensen said smugly. He dismounted smoothly, shaking out his legs. Jared followed suit and stretched, legs feeling like jelly from squeezing Stranger’s sides. Jensen plunked himself onto the ground where he stood, throwing his arms out to the side. Jared sat next to him, arms wrapped around his knees. Gabriel wandered off to munch on grass, and Stranger stood a few feet away from the boys.  
“So,” Jensen said, looking expectantly at Jared.  
“So what?” Jared glanced down at Jensen’s face.  
“Tell me about yourself.” Jensen demanded. Jared blushed.  
“What about me? There’s not that much.” Jensen rolled his eyes and pushed himself to a seated position.  
“I heard you beat the shit out of three kids because they went after Stranger. Tell me about that.”  
“I didn’t beat the shit- okay. Fine. I beat up three kids. Did Genevieve tell you that?” Jensen shook his head.  
“Seb did. Your dad told him.”  
“Yeah, okay, so I lost my temper.” Jared rubbed a hand self-consciously through his hair. “I was in the barn late one night, reading in Stranger’s stall after I stopped going to school, and I heard these people come in. I assumed they were the stable hands, because no one else should have been able to get in, but they were talking really quietly and were walking on tiptoe. I stood up and looked out over the stall, and I saw them. I knew them, too. They went to my high school. We weren’t exactly friends. They’d been assholes to me that entire year. One had a knife in his hand, and was pulling another out of his bag to hand off, along with some spray paint. I stepped out and asked what they thought they were doing, and they came at me. I punched one and grabbed the knife he was holding, twisting his arm up behind him to get it. I guess I pulled too far because I felt his arm break. I didn’t do the rest, though. Stranger had gotten out. He’s really protective over me, I don’t know why, and went after them. It was scary, actually. One of the owners heard the ruckus and came to check it out. It looked pretty bad. Three kids lying around on the ground around Stranger and I, and there wasn’t a mark on us. So I got blamed for everything and the other guys got jack shit.” Jared heard a bitter note creep into his voice, but he was powerless to stop it. “I spent two weeks moping around at home and the barn, and eventually my father told me that I was coming here. And here I am.” Jensen’s hunter-green eyes were focused sharply on Jared, but Jared didn’t notice. He was watching Stranger nose around Gabriel with love in his eyes.  
“Thank you for telling me, Jared,” Jensen said quietly. A shock of adrenaline shot through Jared’s stomach as Jensen said his name, but he tried to squash it. He shrugged and replied, “You’re welcome.” They sat in silence for a while longer until Jared couldn’t resist any longer.  
“So I told you my story. What about yours?” Jensen looked sharply at him.  
“Look, it’s a long story-,” Jensen tried, but Jared cut in.  
“I know. You told me. But I want to know more about you,” Jared said quickly. He felt the air gush out of him as his face turned bright red. Good going, Padalecki, he cursed himself. Jensen just blinked at him before sighing.  
“Okay, fine. But you don’t tell a single soul. Not even Stranger. Got it? The only people who know about this are Seb, Genevieve, and Sharon.” Jared nodded solemnly as his heart started to beat faster.  
“You know I stole Gabriel, Raphael, and Michael. But, um, I stole them from my father.” Jensen’s face was slowly progressing from bright red to purple. “My father… He’s a douche bag. He’s an asshole. He is the worst person I have ever met, but he had horses. He owns a ranch in Texas. That’s where I grew up, actually. Sebastian was my riding teacher.” Jensen wiped a hand across his mouth. “I learned to ride when I was very young. It shows,” he joked, indicating to his legs. “And I thought my father was just the greatest person in the world. But as I got older, I began to notice how he treated his horses, especially these three. He paid a lot of money for Gabe here, and Michael and Raphael were supposed to be good breeding stallions. But Gabe couldn’t race. He came with a disease that was affecting his front hooves, and he could barely put pressure on them. My father whipped Gabe to within an inch of his life. I was there. My father was drunk. He did the same to Mike and Raphael, when they couldn’t get any of the mares pregnant. He started drinking more and more, and fired more of the hands. He had spent so much money for three horses that were useless to him, and he was losing money for it. He fired Sebastian, and that’s when he moved up here. I was eleven when Seb left. He was basically my only friend. I grew up in a horse town, and people stopped talking to me when they heard what my darling daddy had done to those horses. So slowly, in the middle of the night, after my saint of a mother had dragged my dad’s drunken ass up to bed, I would go out and try to care for the horses he had maimed. Things got better for a little bit as the horses healed, but then things got worse. He had tried to breed Michael again, and it didn’t take. He grabbed a gun and headed out to the barn. I tried to stop him, but he hit me hard across the face with the barrel of his rifle.” Without Jensen realizing it, his hand had floated up to his temple and was rubbing a scar there.  
“I followed him out there as soon as I could walk. I heard a gunshot, and horses screaming. He walked out and saw me. He told me, ‘If I ever see you near those horses again, I’ll kill them and you.’ I ran into the barn and looked around for Michael’s body, but he was fine. My dad had killed my horse. I rode a gelding named Roman, and Roman was dead. That night, after my dad was asleep, I packed a bag, took the three, and ran. I traveled at night, and made it here in two weeks.” Jensen’s shoulders were shaking as badly as his voice, face buried in his hands. Jared ran a comforting hand over his back, wanting to take Jensen into his arms but not daring to. He is older than you, and it’s never going to happen, he reminded himself. You don’t even know if he swings that way. Jensen pulled himself together and took a deep breath. “Seb and Sharon welcomed me here. I had called Seb from the road and explained everything. Sharon took me in, in a heartbeat. She was a saint. My father stormed up here a week later after he had figured out where Seb worked, and demanded that I be given to him. Sharon stood in the front doorway and never budged an inch. My dad left, and never came back. But every once in a while, reports of three missing horses that were never found will come floating around, and my dad’s number will be the one to call if they’re spotted. But so far, I’ve been safe here. I’ve never wanted to leave.” Jensen ended with an air of finality, and breathed out heavily. Jared sat, dumbstruck. He had a hard time imagining how a parent could hit a child. The sun had started to sink behind the trees as Jensen talked. He stood up and offered a hand to Jared, who took it gratefully. As Jared stood to his full height, he quickly became aware that he towered several inches over Jensen. He was bizarrely pleased by that fact. Stranger meandered over to Jared and whuffed on his shoulder.  
“Hi, you.” Jared cooed, and leapt up into the saddle. Jensen mounted Gabriel and patted his neck. Jared was struck by how much love was in Jensen’s eyes as he clicked his tongue to Gabriel, and thought about how Jensen had run away from home to save Gabriel and two others from his father.  
“So what about you and Stranger?” Jensen asked as they picked their way through the underbrush of the woods. “How did you end up with him?”  
“I literally can’t remember a time when I didn’t have Stranger,” Jared admitted, patting the horse’s neck. “He and I were born in the same month, and we’ve been paired ever since. My first memory is of him standing over me. I don’t remember where or why, but that’s what it is. He was born here, actually, when my parents were still together.” Jensen nodded thoughtfully.  
“I’m kind of jealous,” Jensen added. “I miss Roman sometimes, but he would be dead by now, probably. He was old when I was riding him. A gentle giant, my mom called him.” The barn rose above them on a hill, lights shining inside.  
“Thanks for taking me out to your place,” Jared said sincerely.  
“Thanks for coming with me,” Jensen smiled, holding Jared’s gaze. Their eyes were locked on each other, and they were only interrupted by Gen riding out to meet them on Michael, saddled in all his glory with Raphael in tow.  
“Jensen,” she said, completely serious. “We need to get you out of here. Jared, you’re staying here with Sebastian. You’ve never met Jensen, or Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel, and you don’t know anything about Texas. Got it?” Her voice brooked no argument.  
“Gen, what’s going on?” Jensen protested. She shot him a look.  
“Your father is here.”

Jared rode Stranger hard up the last of the hill, getting the bridle and saddle off nearly before he’d gotten down from Stranger’s back. He tossed them onto their hooks and scrubbed a nervous pair of hands through his hair. Jensen had turned tail and headed back into the forest with Gen, picking her mind for everything that had happened while they were gone.  
“Wish me luck,” Jared muttered to Stranger. Stranger just gave him a long look with his big brown eyes. Jared jogged back to the house and let himself in through the back door just as a tall man with eyes the same color as Jensen was standing up, hands braced on their kitchen table. Sebastian sat across from him, cool and composed.  
“Hello,” Jared offered into the unbearably silence that filled the kitchen. Jensen’s father’s face twitched uncomfortably before stretching itself into a grotesque mockery of a smile.  
“I’m Mr. Ackles, Jensen’s father,” he said, reaching a big hand out to Jared. Jared’s hand, which was large in its own respect, was engulfed in the man’s grip.  
“I’m Jared. Nice to meet you,” Jared said, glancing at Seb. “Who is Jensen?” Mr. Ackles’s eyes flashed with anger.  
“How long have you been here, son?” Mr. Ackles tried for a casual tone as he sat back down, but he was unsuccessful.  
“I’ve been here for a few weeks,” he said, trying to inconspicuously look to Sebastian for guidance, but Sebastian wouldn’t meet his eyes. His gaze was locked on Mr. Ackles.  
“Look, Alan, Jensen hasn’t been here. I would have called if he had showed up. Honestly, I haven’t seen him since I stopped teaching at your stable.”  
“Sebastian, I don’t believe you for a goddamn second. He is my son, and I will deal with him as I see fit!” Sebastian cocked an eyebrow at the angry man as his British accent came out in full force, a sharp contrast to Mr. Ackles’s Southern one.  
“Jensen would be twenty-two now, Alan. I believe he’s old enough to make his own decisions.” Mr. Ackles seemed to realize that he would get nothing from his old employee, and stood again.  
“If you see him, let me know.” The command rolled from Alan’s tongue like a threat, but Sebastian didn’t flinch.  
“I’ll be sure to do that.” Mr. Ackles left in a storm of movement, flicking his leather jacket’s collar up and conspicuously adjusting his gold watch before flinging the door shut behind him. Jared turned to Sebastian as soon as the door closed, but Sebastian held a finger to his lips until they heard the distinct noise of a car engine starting and roaring off into the night. Sebastian slumped into his chair, tension and fear flooding out of his body.  
“By God, I cannot stand that man,” he sighed.  
“That’s Jensen’s father?” Jared asked in disgust. It was easy to fit the man into the story Jensen had told him earlier. Sebastian nodded.  
“Do you know…?” Sebastian trailed off. Jared inclined his head, and then dropped it into his laced fingers on the table.  
“How frequently does this happen?” Jared groaned. “I thought I was going to have a heart attack when Gen met us on our way up to the barn.”  
“This is only the second time he’s been here,” Sebastian said, rubbing his fingers into his temples. “With some luck, we won’t see him again for a long time.” He pulled out a cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number. A tinny version of Genevieve’s voice floated out of it.  
“You can bring him back here, now. He’s gone.” He snapped the phone shut and looked tiredly at Jared. “I wish Jensen didn’t have to hide from his father. He got his GED by studying with Sharon, but he didn’t go to school and he never leaves Hinckley. He can’t do much in the horse world because Alan would find him and skin him alive, which is a shame because Jensen is honestly talented.” Shadows passed over Sebastian’s face, but they leapt away as Genevieve and Jensen burst through the back door.  
“Why the hell was he here?” Jensen demanded. His voice cracked and his composure had been completely erased. Green eyes darted wildly to the front door and back to Sebastian’s face. Sebastian stood up, placing his hands firmly on Jensen’s shoulders.  
“He came to find you. He doesn’t know you’re here. This is still a safe place for you, Jensen.” Jensen dropped his head onto Sebastian’s shoulders and breathed out, slumping into his teacher before standing straight again.  
“Okay,” he said simply. Then he turned from Sebastian, walked up the staircase, and shut the door to his bedroom behind him. Genevieve still stood in her riding boots, playing with a strand of her hair. Jared rubbed a hand over her shoulder.  
“How was your ride?” Jared tried. Gen looked tiredly at him, the same fatigue that carved wrinkles into Sebastian’s face present in hers.  
“It was fine.” Genevieve said. She dropped into a chair and kicked off her boots, leaning her head against the back of the chair. “It was fine. We didn’t talk about it at all.” Her voice quavered. Jared pulled a leftover bowl of pasta out of the fridge, heated it up silently, and then pushed it in front of Gen with a fork stuck into it. She looked up at him with grateful eyes, and murmured, “Thank you,” before digging in.  
“I’m going to go check on Jensen,” Jared said, mostly for his own benefit. He didn’t think Sebastian or Gen would really notice if he had walked out the front door into the night at that moment. He took the stairs by two and knocked thrice on Jensen’s door before he could stop himself.  
“Jensen?” Jared called softly. “Do you want to talk or anything?” Jensen’s door swung open immediately. His green eyes were rimmed with red and he sniffled a little.  
“Go away,” he mumbled, but he stepped back and let Jared in. His room was warm with light, and it was clear that Jensen had lived here for a long time. Pictures of Jensen with people and horses Jared didn’t know decorated the walls. Jared took a quick look around before turning back to Jensen.  
“Are you okay?” Jared asked, cursing himself internally. Of course he wasn’t okay: what a dumb question. Jensen sniffled again and laughed a little.  
“Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry that you have to see me crying like a little kid.” Jensen tried to smile, but the corners of his mouth wavered.  
“I know that this was literally the worst thing that could have happened, but it’s okay. He’s gone now, and he doesn’t know you’re here.” Jared tried to console, with mixed effects. Jensen scrubbed a hand across his face, smearing tears and snot. He pulled a tissue from a box on his desk and blew his nose.  
“I know,” Jensen said miserably. “It just makes me so nervous when he comes, and I didn’t think he was going to come back because it’d been ten years, and I don’t want him to hurt Sebastian. I would actually fall down and die if he ever hurt Sebastian, or Gen, or you.” Jensen’s eyes flicked up to Jared’s, which were watching him with care. “I feel like I’ve known you for a long time,” Jensen admitted. “Even though you haven’t even been here a month.”  
“I feel like I’ve been here forever,” Jared said in agreement. “I feel like I grew up here or something.”  
“It’s a good place to grow up,” Jensen nodded. “I did.” Jared looked at Jensen, this boy-man crying against the wall because his adopted home had been threatened. He was once against struck with the urge to take Jensen into his arms in a bone-crushing hug, but he didn’t know how that would be received. Jensen so clearly cared about this place more than anyone else, besides maybe Sebastian. Jared suddenly wished he had been raised here, with his mom and dad together, so that he would have known Jensen growing up. They could have been brothers, or best friends. Or more than that, an unhelpful little voice inside of Jared crowed. Jared lit an internal match and burned the thought before it grew beyond the ghost of an idea. Jensen blew his nose again.  
“Thanks for coming up here,” Jensen said, head down. “I’m really fine, though.” His voice cracked again, and fresh tears flowed from his eyes. “I just get emotional for stupid things. Jesus, I’m such a girl!”  
“It’s okay, Jensen,” Jared said, voice deep and slow and comforting. “You love this place. It’s obvious. And people get emotional about the things they love. That’s not stupid.” Jensen looked gratefully at him.  
“I guess you’re right.” Jensen sighed. He wiped more tears from his face, but the tide seemed to be ebbing. Jared reached out impulsively and rubbed the thick of Jensen’s shoulder comfortingly. “See?” Jared said again. “It’s okay.” Jensen nodded. As Jared went to remove his hand, Jensen grabbed it between both of his and squeezed. A real smile crept out from behind the clouds shrouding his face. “Really. Thank you.” He hesitated for a moment, as if he wanted to say something else, but then dropped Jared’s hand and let the moment pass.  
“I think I’m going to go to bed now, Jay. Thanks for coming up.” Jensen blew his nose for the third time and sat on his bed, kicking off his boots.  
“No problem, Jen,” Jared tried out the nickname and found that it fit. He smiled at Jensen and left the room, closing the door gently behind him. He walked down the hallway to his room, sitting heavily on the bed after flicking on the lights. He called me Jay, Jared thought in wonder. No one ever calls me that anymore. He had the feeling that maybe someone had, once, but he hadn’t seen that person in a very long time. He toed off his shoes and his jeans and curled into his bed. He turned the lights out and lay in the darkness, thinking about Jensen and his family, and how Jared’s own was so different. “Maybe I should call my dad tomorrow,” he thought. With that idea in mind, he shifted to get comfortable and fell asleep.

And the days passed. Jensen’s father didn’t come back. After a few days, Jensen began to leave his room for more than an hour at a time. He rode again. Jared’s father was happy to hear from his son, and even happier that Jared loved it there. Titania quickly settled into the pattern of the barn, and made friends with even Lucifer, to an extent. Sebastian began to give Genevieve and Jared formal riding lessons. Jared didn’t need them, but he enjoyed watching Genevieve and Lion learning to work together more closely, even though they were already a good pair. Jared spent a happy month getting to know Genevieve and Jensen better, and he sank his roots into the cold ground of the farm like a tree growing to the soil and the sun. Stranger and Gabriel became fast friends. He began to think of the farm as less of ‘here’ and more as ‘home’.

Jared was sound asleep, curled on his side, dreaming of horses and fire when Jensen burst into his bedroom at three AM on a Tuesday morning.  
“Jared!” Jensen cried. “The barn- the horses-,” he spluttered. Jared sat up immediately, drenched in a cold sweat.  
“Fire?” Jared asked. Jensen gave him an odd look but barreled on.  
“No. Wolves. And Lucifer got out, and brought Titania with him. I need your help.” Jared nodded and rolled swiftly out of bed, pulling his boots on with one hand while searching along the wall for the lights with the other. He flipped them on, eyes protesting the sudden change, and grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair.  
“Let’s go.” Jared followed Jensen to the stairs.  
“Jared? Jensen? What’s going on?” Genevieve’s sleepy voice floated out of her bedroom as they ran past.  
“It’s okay, Gen. Go back to bed,” Jensen soothed.  
“Okay, okay,” she mumbled. “Whatever you say.” The two young men thundered down the stairs and out the back door. The lights were blazing in the barn.  
“They went out the back door- the latch must have broken,” Jensen said, panting a little as they ran to the barn. Jared nodded and grabbed for the lead line hanging next to Stranger’s stall. “Sorry, boy,” Jared said as Stranger poked his head over the half-door. “I’ll be back in a bit.” He followed Jensen out the back door and into the night, armed with flashlights and a burning desire to find the horses and return quickly to their beds.  
“This wouldn’t be such a problem if there weren’t wolves in these parts,” Jensen explained as they cast their lights from side to side.  
“Wolves?” Jared squeaked. Jensen had mentioned them earlier, but the reality of the huge and furry monsters hadn’t sunk in until Jared made it outside. Jensen nodded then indicated to the left. He pointed his light to the ground, where two sets of hoof prints were visible. They tracked them to the bush surrounding the woods. Thankfully, the lights in their hands glimmered off of Lucifer’s coat from where he stood just inside the protection of the forest.  
“I’m going to let you handle Lucifer, and I’ll get Titania,” Jensen said slowly, eyes on the grey horse standing behind Lucifer. Jared nodded and stepped forward.  
“Here, Luci,” he called. “We’re friends, remember?” He moved forward again, and Lucifer watched him with disdain but didn’t move. Jensen sidestepped Jared and disappeared into the brush, coming out the other side far to the horses’ left.  
“Titania,” he said softly. “Come here, baby, let’s go back inside.” Her ears flickered towards Jensen and he sighed with relief as she stepped towards him. Jared continued to slowly walk towards Lucifer, who just watched him. Jensen came closer to him with Titania on a lead, waiting for Jared. Jared got close enough to Lucifer to clip the lead to his halter, and it was only then that Jared noticed that Lucifer was drenched in sweat and quivering with fear.  
“What is it, baby?” Jared asked softly. Jensen’s breath hissed out behind him.  
“Jared. We need to go. Now.” Jared looked further past Lucifer and stopped dead in his tracks. A pair of almost-sentient eyes glinted out towards him from the forest. Two hairy, pointed ears poked up above them, and a quivering black nose topped a muzzle that was curled into a snarl. The wolf stared straight at Jared, who was petrified. “Come on, Lucifer,” he whispered, voice shaking. “Let’s go,” he tried. Lucifer looked straight at him, and took a step. “Good boy,” Jared said, barely audible. Jensen’s breath was coming fast and shallow, and Jared could feel the nervous tension radiating off of him from behind. Jared chanced a step backwards, and Lucifer followed him. He took another, and Lucifer stepped over a branch out of the woods. The wolf didn’t move. Jared continued to lead Lucifer away, step by laborious step, until finally the wolf turned away, uninterested in the humans and their horses, and headed deeper into the woods. Jared ran his hands over Lucifer’s neck and back, looking for injuries but finding nothing. He let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding and turned to look at Jensen. Jensen smiled at him. “Way to keep your cool, Jay. That’s exactly how to do it.” Jared smiled and blushed under the praise. He and Jensen led the horses back to the barn, walking shoulder to shoulder. A little burst of energy shot through Jared’s stomach every time Jensen’s shoulder brushed his, and he smiled to himself. He called me Jay again, he thought happily. They stabled the horses, Jared brushing Lucifer’s coat until his breathing slowed back to normal, and returned to the house, after barricading the barn’s doors. Jared collapsed into a chair in the kitchen.  
“I am so glad we didn’t get eaten by wolves,” he sighed. He stayed for a second then sat up straight. “Jensen, do you ever think about the fact that we could have been eaten by wolves at any given moment?” Jensen turned to face him from where he leaned against a counter, shock on his face.  
“I’ve never thought about that before. Wolves? What the hell?” Jensen said, a smile growing across his face. Jared let out a guffaw as the ridiculousness of the situation hit him. “Dances with Wolves? Yeah, I guess we do that,” Jensen joked, laughing with him. The two of them sat, at three AM in a kitchen, laughing together about the very real danger of being eaten alive. Jared laughed until his belly hurt and tears streamed down his cheeks. Jensen pushed off from the counter, laughing soundlessly in front of Jared. When their chuckles died away, Jensen looked down at the young man sitting in front of him. He was eighteen years old, and beautiful beyond words. Jared looked up at the man in front of him and thought the same. Jensen leaned down to Jared’s still-smiling mouth and kissed him. Jared sat up like he had been shocked, staring at Jensen. Jensen straightened back up without a word and walked to the staircase and headed upstairs, hiding panic. His face was burning and he was hoping beyond reason that he hadn’t just broken everything to pieces. Jared sat motionless for a second before his brain caught up to his racing heart. Jensen, his mind screamed. Jared leapt to his feet and crossed the kitchen in one stride of his long legs and reached the stairs in two more. Jensen was halfway to his room before Jared caught his wrist in his hand and pulled him towards him on the staircase. Jensen’s face was pale as Jared used a huge hand to gently lift his chin.  
“Did you mean that?” Jared demanded. Jensen had no other choice but to nod as much as he could with Jared’s hand on his face. Jared looked into Jensen’s eyes, searching for an answer, but Jensen didn’t wait to see what Jared would find. It was Jensen who reached up, pulling Jared towards him again and capturing his lips between his own. He laced his hands through Jared’s long hair and pulled gently, freeing a delicious hiss of air from Jared as Jared’s hands came up to claim Jensen’s face, thumbs dragging over his cheekbones. Jensen licked into Jared’s mouth, taking what he could from him as Jared’s lips parted beneath his own. Jared gave as much as he had, trying to keep up with the Jensen but ending up just riding the wave. Jensen spun, pulling Jared up the rest of the stairs before pushing Jared against the door of his bedroom and fumbling at the doorknob until the door swung open. Jared looked at Jensen, nervousness and longing mingling in his eyes, and stepped purposefully back into Jensen’s room. Jensen followed him in, predatory and dark, and closed the door behind him. Jensen attacked Jared as a wolf might have done; teeth marking and nipping at sensitive lips that had Jared yelping like a puppy. He pulled Jared’s shirt off over his head, smoothing his hands down the angular planes of Jared’s chest. Jared returned the favor, running his hands over Jensen’s shoulders before Jensen pulled him to the ground, kissing him furiously. Jared rolled them on the floor, head ducking to suck a bruise into Jensen’s collarbone. Their belts clanged together gently when Jensen sat up after an eternity of warm lips and warmer hands, pulling Jared so he was sitting in Jensen’s lap, straddling his hips.  
“So fucking beautiful,” Jared murmured, lips ghosting over Jensen’s shoulders. “I want to count your freckles.” Jensen’s hands floated over Jared’s smooth brown skin, feeling Jared’s vertebrae push against his skin as Jared bent his head to Jensen’s neck. Jensen glanced at the clock, which read four AM.  
“You should probably go back to your room,” he said regretfully. Jared immediately sat up, fear of rejection shining clearly in his eyes.  
“Just so you aren’t walking out of my room kiss-drunk and half naked when Gen and Seb get up,” Jensen clarified, running his hands over Jared’s chest. Jared nodded in understanding and stood, pulling his shirt over his head. Jensen stood with him, bare-chested, and pulled him down for one last kiss before he left.  
“Are you okay with this?” Jensen asked as Jared walked out. It was a little late for that, but he might as well try for being a good person. Jared’s grin in response was maybe a little wicked, and maybe a little seductive, and his enthusiastic, “Hell yeah!” pushed all doubt out of Jensen’s head. Jared let himself into his room and flopped happily onto his bed. Not just a crush, his mind sang. He wrapped his arms around himself, wishing they were Jensen’s, and fell asleep.

Genevieve bounded into Jared’s room two hours later with an evil smile. “Good morning, sunshine!” She announced cheerily.  
“What the hell, Gen?” Jared rolled over, away from her infectious laughter and unbreakable morning happiness.  
“You know,” she said; her voice dropped low as she leaned in close, “you made the cutest little noises, when you were doing whatever you were doing last night.” She hopped up and left, laughing on her way. Last night? Jared’s brain was moving like sludge. Last night I KISSED JENSEN AND GEN KNOWS, Jared’s mind started screaming. He flung the blankets off and pulled his pants and shoes on, struggling with the buttons of his shirt, as his hands refused to cooperate. Jensen walked in, leaning against the doorframe in an attempt at calm, but his hair was standing on end and his already enormous eyes were stretched to an absurd size. “Genevieve,” he choked. Jared looked at him, waiting. Jensen nodded. “Okay.” Another nod. “Good.” Another. Jared cocked an eyebrow at him.  
“It’ll be okay,” Jared promised.  
“Yep.” Jensen nodded again, and walked barefoot back to his room, stumbling slightly. Jared laughed to himself at the surreal feel to it all, and couldn’t wipe the grin off his face as he went down to breakfast. He smiled at Sebastian, who smiled back, and he smiled at Gen, who choked on her coffee but grinned in response. And then he smiled at Jensen, whose eyes were burning as he looked at Jared. The green threatened to overtake the black of his pupils entirely; as though Jared were the sun and Jensen couldn’t look away.  
“We’re getting someone new soon,” Sebastian announced after a few moments of comfortable silence and the clink of silverware on plates.  
“Who?” Genevieve, Jensen, and Jared chorused immediately.  
“His name is Misha Collins, and his parents want him to learn empathy. Apparently he isn’t the most understanding of people. And also, he was arrested for streaking a few weeks ago.”  
“I like him already!” Gen declared. She stood, dumped her dirty dishes into the sink unceremoniously, and stomped to the door. “I’m going to take care of Lion. Who else is going out now?” Jared and Jensen both stood up, cleaned their places, and followed her out.  
“Don’t do anything stupid until I get out there,” Sebastian called affectionately after them, and then the door swung shut. 

Jared and Jensen walked a half-pace behind Genevieve, waiting for her to say something. She didn’t, however, until she got to Lion’s stall and hopped up onto the door to sit.  
“So, you two,” she started. Jared and Jensen braced themselves for the worst. “I don’t know what the fuck happened last night-,”  
“There were wolves,” Jared interrupted.  
“We had to go get the horses!” Jensen burst out. Genevieve held up a hand with an affected expression of saintly patience.  
“You know what I’m talking about. I just want to say that I’m totally cool with whatever you guys do, no matter how this ends, but keep it out of the barn.” Genevieve’s eyes were serious as she watched the boys’ faces. “Don’t let whatever happens ruin your friendship, and don’t let it affect the way you treat the horses or the people around them. This is a safe haven,” she reminded them. “Also, I would recommend keeping it down, because, Jared, you are loud.” She winked and hopped over the other side of the door, dropping into Lion’s stall and cooing to her large, reddish horse. Jensen dragged Jared away after it was clear that they were dismissed to where Gabriel’s friendly face watched them curiously.  
“So what do you think?” Jensen asked after a moment of awkward silence. Jared huffed out his breath shortly.  
“I think that I don’t want to go back to the way we were before.” Jared said honestly. His heart was pounding in his chest, eyes trained on Jensen’s face. His green eyes flicked down to the ground, then flitted back up to meet Jared’s. Jared looked down at him, cautiously brought his hand up to rest on Jensen’s shoulder  
“What do you think?” Jared asked softly. Jensen nodded once.  
“I don’t want to either, Jay. There’s just something about you…” Jensen trailed off, blushing, and turned to face Gabriel instead. The distant noise of Gen leading Lion out the front entrance floated into his ears, coupled with the softer noise of Jared breathing beside him, watching him. Jensen steeled himself and turned back.  
“I like you, Jared. A lot. I want to know everything about you. I want to be with you.” Jensen’s words tumbled out in a rush as he tripped over his own tongue. He blushed furiously, emphasizing the freckles standing in stark contrast to his surprisingly fair skin. Jared couldn’t help himself as he ran the tips of his fingers gently over Jensen’s soft cheek. Jensen looked up at him, not bothering to hide anything that was written on his face. The level of affection and respect that was etched over Jensen’s skin was written as clearly as a book, and Jared hoped that Jensen could see that it was reciprocated. He leaned down to Jensen and pressed his lips to Jensen’s, eyes fluttering shut as Jensen stretched his neck up to Jared, hands climbing over Jared’s arms to wrap around his shoulders.  
“So last night,” Jensen mused as he worried his bottom lip and looked up at Jared through thick lashes. “It wasn’t just a one-time thing?” Jared laughed incredulously. “Hell no,” he breathed, and leaned down to kiss Jensen under the bright lights of the barn. 

Jared and Jensen unbuckled the bridles and saddles from Stranger and Gabriel, letting them loose into a paddock after a morning ride. Jared ran his hands through his hair, liberating his locks from where they had been glued to his scalp by his helmet. Jensen smirked at him. “Are you sure you don’t need a haircut?” Jared stuck his tongue out at Jensen, whose green eyes crinkled with mirth.  
“Oh, did you just get in?” Genevieve called to them from where she was, brushing Lion’s coat in front of the entrance to the barn. “Jensen, Sebastian wants you to go inside. Misha should be here any minute and Seb doesn’t want to overwhelm him with me and Jared.” Jensen nodded and swung his own helmet off his head, scrubbing a hand through his short hair. “I’ll see you later,” he told Jared, and walked towards the barn. Gen trotted to where Jared leaned against a rail, copying his stance.  
“I heard Misha’s a little more cuckoo than I am,” she confided. “Like, he’s coming here because his parents just don’t know how to handle him anymore.”  
“I don’t think you’re crazy, Gen,” Jared objected. She rolled her eyes.  
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, but if I weren’t I would be able to keep myself from stealing things.” She pulled a small wooden carving out of her pocket and rubbed it between two fingers before handing it to Jared. He accepted it, glancing down at it curiously. It was a small bird, its beak weathered with time and fingers.  
“Put that back in the living room, won’t you? I know I won’t.” Gen said off-handedly. Jared’s eyes flicked up to hers. “Sorry,” she added. “But I’m serious. Misha is supposed to be a cruel kid who has no empathy for anyone else. His psychologist thinks that he likes horses enough that it’ll help him to be here. His parents said he used to be a sweet kid, so we might be able to dig that back up.” Jared nodded, still playing with the bird between his long fingers. In the distance, a car’s engine came into earshot, growing louder as it approached the stable.  
“That must be him,” Jared commented, looking toward the house. Genevieve wandered back to Lion, who had been grazing peacefully in her rider’s absence. Gen picked up a soft brush and ran it over Lion’s coat, murmuring to her. Jared followed her.  
“Why do you steal things?” Jared asked. He and Genevieve had spent a lot of time together, but their conversations had all been surface-level. She glanced up at him, brown eyes hesitant.  
“I think,” she started, biting her lip and pulling horsehair out of the brush, “that I take things because I feel like I would take better care of them than their owners would. Or because I think that they would belong to me in a righteous world. I’m not really sure,” she confessed. She ran the brush down Lion’s flank. “I don’t know how to stop it. Being here is great, but I don’t think I’d be okay out in the world. I would be the giant kindergartener, taking other kid’s toys. Again.” Jared hummed in acknowledgement.  
“I think this is where you’re supposed to be, then.” He offered. “There is no where else you’d rather be, right?” Genevieve looked up at him in surprise.  
“I guess you’re right,” she said quietly. She looked down at Lion’s face, where she grazed in the grass. The house door opened loudly right then, breaking the weight of the moment.  
“Come meet Misha!” Jensen hollered. Jared rolled his eyes, but started walking towards the house. Gen tossed the comb into a bucket full of other brushes and joined him. From the house, they could hear Sebastian talking to someone.  
“I understand you like horses?” Sebastian’s gentle voice asked.  
“Nope, not at all.” A sullen voice shot back sarcastically. As Jared and Genevieve reached the kitchen, they were greeted by their first glimpse of Misha Collins. He leaned against a wall, a boot kicked up behind him to rest on the wallpaper. Blue eyes sparkled out from behind a mop of tangled, almost-black hair, and his hands were shoved deep into the pockets of his ripped jeans. His chapped lips were quirked into a half-smile. Seb stood across from him with his arms crossed on his chest.  
“That’s unfortunate, because they might be the only creatures here who will put up with you with that attitude.” Sebastian instantly replied, voice more stern than Jared had ever heard it. Misha’s eyes narrowed for a moment, then widened as he smiled a little.  
“You’re not bad, old man. I don’t mind horses.” Misha said unwillingly. Jensen smirked where he stood, imitating Sebastian’s posture with his arms crossed. Jared and Genevieve watched as Misha stretched, arms lifted high above his head. As his jacket shifted, the print on his shirt became visible: FUCK THE POLICE. Jared rolled his eyes as Genevieve snorted.  
“So, I’m going to take my stuff upstairs, and then we can have a powwow and braid each others’ hair! Kosher?” Misha left, grabbing two duffel bags as he took the stairs two by two.  
“He’s going to be fun,” Jensen offered after a beat of silence. Sebastian exhaled sharply in frustration. “I hope so.” 

The dysfunctional family sat around the dinner table later that night, after barn chores had been done and Misha had been unpacked and given all necessary information. Jared had noticed that his snarky facial expressions had dissipated while being led around the barn, but didn’t comment. He understood all too well the feeling of comfort that could be found in a barn. Dinner was quiet, with Sebastian trying to ask Misha questions and receiving only silence or one-word responses. The only time Misha genuinely answered a question in detail was when asked about his past experience with horses.  
“How did you know you liked horses?” Sebastian inquired.  
“I rode when I was younger,” Misha said. “There was a barn near my old house that gave lessons and stuff. But when we moved away three years ago, I couldn’t find a new place to ride.” Jared lifted his eyebrows at Jensen, who just shrugged. Maybe there was a way to get through to Misha that didn’t involve force. Misha’s attention wandered, sizing up the rest of the people sitting at the table. Jensen, Jared, and Sebastian got cursory glances, but his blue gaze rested on Genevieve. She looked up from her plate and growled through a mouthful of chicken, “What’re you looking at, punk?” Misha’s dark eyebrows shot into his hair at her ferocity, but he wasn’t intimidated by her. “A girl who looks like she should be locked up somewhere.”  
Gen flushed but shot back, “Yeah, well, I’m here, aren’t I? Better than jail.” Misha nodded begrudgingly.  
“So why are you all here?” Misha asked, indicating at the rest of the table with his spoon.  
“I killed a man,” Jensen deadpanned. Misha looked impressed.  
“Really?”  
“No!” Jensen barked back. “I’ve been here a long time, kid.” Misha raised one eyebrow, but let it go.  
“I beat some people up.” Jared offered easily.  
Misha nodded. “That’s nice. Why?”  
“None of your business,” Jared said, just as calmly as before. Misha’s eyes glimmered at the challenge of breaking through Jared’s nonchalant denial, but didn’t ask any more.  
“I stole a car,” Gen said casually, standing and cleaning off her spot. “It was a nice car too.”  
“The only type of car to steal.” Misha agreed. His asshole façade had slipped a little, revealing just a boy underneath, with maybe a rebellious streak that was a little too wide for comfort and a whole lot of loneliness. He grabbed his plate and shoved his chair back as he stood, dropped his plate into the sink, and left without another word. His boots hit the wood of the stairs hard as he climbed up to his room.  
“He wasn’t so bad,” Gen started hesitantly. Sebastian nodded.  
“I think he’s going to take time, but he’ll come around.”  
“Did his parents say why he’s apparently so awful?” Jensen asked gruffly.  
“They said it started after they moved, but he hasn’t said anything about being bullied or anything to his psychologist.” Sebastian said. As the rest table was cleared, the conversation ranged from Misha to what needed to be done on the farm. Later in the evening, when the four were arranged in the living room, the phone rang unexpectedly.  
“This is The Trail Ends Here Behavioral Therapy Farm, Sebastian speaking,” Sebastian said as he picked up the receiver, fingers curling around the hard plastic. “Oh, hello, Mr. Padalecki!” He greeted, glancing at Jared. “Sure, he’s right here. Did you want to talk to him?” He held the phone out in Jared’s general direction.  
“Hey, Dad,” Jared said quietly as he took the phone. He realized, with a sinking stomach, that despite his promise to himself that he would call weeks ago, he had forgotten.  
“It wouldn’t kill you to call me every now and again, would it?” Mr. Padalecki asked affectionately. “I take it everything is well there?”  
“Yeah, Dad, it’s going great!” Jared moved out of the living room and into the empty kitchen, hooking a foot around a chair and plopping himself down. “How’s everything at home?” Jared listened as his father shared stories of his daily life, telling anecdotes of work and the people they both knew. Eventually, the flow of words slowed between them and they sat in comfortable silence, until a question popped into Jared’s head and out of his mouth.  
“Dad, will you come visit me here?” There was a shocked and sudden silence on his father’s end. Jared bit his lip, worrying that he had crossed a line.  
“Jared…” His father said, voice dripping with grief.  
“I’m sorry,” Jared rushed. “I know, that’s not a good idea and all, but I miss you, and I think it’d be good for you.” Mr. Padalecki snorted.  
“Yeah, sure, son. It’d be real good for your old man. I haven’t been back there since your mom and I split up.”  
“I know.” Jared paused. “Forget about it. It’s a bad idea. I just haven’t seen you in a while.”  
“I miss you too, Jared. I’ll think about it.” Although the nostalgia and loss hadn’t entirely left Mr. Padalecki’s voice, there was a slightly uplifted note, one of hope and the future.  
“That’s fine, Dad. Thank you.” Jared glanced behind him, into the living room where his newly adopted family sat. “You’ll like everyone, I know it.”  
“I’m sure I will, son. Sebastian seemed great when I talked to him before. I’ll call you later, okay? It’s bedtime for this old man.” Jared said goodnight, and hung up the phone. Scrubbing a hand across his eyes, he considered the possibility of his father coming here. Maybe I’ll finally get some answers to my questions about Mom, he thought.  
“How’s your dad?” Jensen asked as Jared reentered the living room.  
“He’s fine. He might come to visit.” Jared said, aiming for a light tone. Sebastian looked up in surprise.  
“Your father wants to come visit?”  
“Not exactly. I asked him to. Is that okay?” Jared added as an afterthought.  
“Of course,” Sebastian replied instantly. “I just know that he hasn’t been here for a very long time.” Gen, from where she was curled on an armchair, asked with her usual bluntness, “Wouldn’t he be uncomfortable, especially because your mom isn’t here?” Jared shrugged.  
“I don’t know. But I think it might be good for him.” A wave of fatigue crashed over Jared suddenly; he could barely keep his eyes open. “I’m going to bed,” he announced, moving to the stairs. A chorus of responses greeted his back as he mounted the steps to his room. He pulled the door shut behind him and stripped off his shirt, rubbing his sore shoulders and unbuttoning his jeans. Behind him, the door creaked open and someone padded softly into his room.  
“Hey,” Jensen murmured into the skin of Jared’s shoulder, wrapping his arms around his waist from behind. Jared smiled.  
“Hey, you,” he said. He turned around, looping his arms around Jensen’s shoulders and kissing the top of his head. “What’re you doing here?”  
“I wanted to make sure you were fine,” Jensen mumbled. “I know you haven’t talked to your dad in a while, and you probably missed him.” Jared was touched by Jensen’s concern. He tried to avoid the topic of his family, if possible, and Sebastian had been more than okay with following that plan.  
“I’m fine,” Jared said, surprised with the honesty that shone apparent in his tone. “Seriously. I’d love it if he came here, but I know that’s asking a lot of him.” He tucked two fingers under Jensen’s chin and tilted it up, so Jared could look him in the eye. “How are you?”  
“Fine,” Jensen responded easily, and smiled. Jared leaned down and captured the smile with his own, lips parting Jensen’s and starting a rhythm that Jensen quickly matched. Too soon, Jensen stepped away and grinned ruefully.  
“You need to go to sleep,” he said, mock-sternly. Jared hung his head.  
“I know, but I don’t want you to leave,” he groaned. The corner of Jensen’s mouth quirked up into a half-smile.  
“I’m not leaving. I’ll be right next door.” Jensen stepped close, stealing one more kiss from Jared before leaving and shutting the door quietly behind him. Jared pulled his jeans off the rest of the way, hit the light switch, and collapsed into the warmth of his bed. 

Jared woke with the rising sun, sprawled across his comforter in just his boxers. He snuffled into his pillow, trying to hold onto the dreams he had been having, and rolled over to face the open room. He cracked open an eye to glance at his alarm clock, and instead caught a glimpse of Jensen leaning shirtless against the wall opposite him, smirking.  
“Jesus,” Jared gasped, grabbing for a blanket, a pillow, anything to cover his bare skin and his morning wood.  
“Nope. Try again.” Jensen quipped, smirk growing. He sauntered over to Jared and shoved him closer to the wall, lying down in the available space. “Hi,” he said, once he had made himself comfortable in Jared’s space.  
“What the fuck, dude?” Jared grumbled, pushing his mop of unruly hair out of his face. Jensen just squirmed closer, taking Jared into his arms and pushing his face against the top of Jared’s head.  
“I just woke up and wanted to say hi.” Against his own will, Jared found himself seeking more of Jensen’s heat, scooting closer and pressing his bare skin to Jensen’s own. As he lay there, he quickly became aware of Jensen’s own morning erection pressing against his hip. He flushed. “How long had you been standing there?”  
“A minute, maybe.” Jensen said easily. “You’re beautiful when you sleep.” Jared blushed deeper, and shifted so he wasn’t lying on his boner. It was hard to concentrate on forming coherent sentences when Jensen was so close to him, his breath warming the shell of Jared’s ear and his strong arms wrapped around him.  
“Thanks,” he drawled, attempting for casual. He was not very successful. Jensen moved, pulling Jared so he was facing him directly, chest to chest and pelvis to pelvis. “No one else is awake,” Jensen murmured, gaze flickering from Jared’s eyes to his lips. “Yeah?” Jared agreed, shifting again, skin dragging on cotton dragging on skin and setting Jared’s mind ablaze with the friction. Jensen pressed his hips closer, humming his pleasure as he gently kissed Jared, taking his face softly between two his hands. Jared opened up, allowed Jensen to slip a leg between his and his tongue into his mouth. He groaned into Jensen’s mouth, as Jensen’s leg started moving slowly, rubbing against Jared. Jensen’s breathing quickened as did his pace, moving rougher as his hands starting groping harder, pulling Jared closer and dragging blunt nails down his bare back. Jared freed his arms from where he was lying on them and wrapped them around Jensen, squeezing him tighter and tangling his fingers in Jensen’s short hair. “So beautiful like this,” Jensen mumbled as his movements elicited another breathy moan from Jared. “Want you to come saying my name.” Jensen’s words were like a shock to Jared’s system- his heart started pounding and the blood flow to his groin increased tenfold. And he did as Jensen had asked a few moments later, groaning, “Jensen,” as Jared found his release, spilling come into his boxers. He could feel Jensen’s climax, through his shorts, warm and sticky against his leg. Jared breathed out roughly, nestling his head into Jensen’s shoulder.  
“Yeah, Jay? You liked that?” Jensen asked, carding gentle fingers though Jared’s hair. He nodded, wanting to lay here with Jensen for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, his body had other ideas. The come was drying in Jared’s boxers, quickly making a crusty mess that made him itch.  
“Shower,” Jared mumbled, shoving at Jensen to move. Jensen grinned.  
“Fine, princess. Let’s go get you cleaned up.” Jared grabbed his towel out of his closet, with his toiletries and opened his door, checking quickly for anyone in the hallway. The house was quiet, and the only noises Jared could hear were those from birds outside. He padded further down the hall, away from the stairs and towards the bathroom that he shared with Jensen and Sebastian, and now Misha. Genevieve had offered to share the bathroom she used, but none of the men had wanted to deal with sharing counter space with her tampons. He let himself in, Jensen slipping in behind him.  
“Seriously? I can’t shower in peace?” Jared grumped halfheartedly.  
“I don’t have anywhere better to be.” Jensen sat himself on the closed toilet, watching Jared with his emerald eyes. Jared self-consciously attempted to adjust his boxers and pat down his hair, but there was no hope for his dignity. He reached across Jensen to turn on the shower, and slapped Jensen’s hand away as it drifted down to his shorts. Jensen smirked. “Okay, okay. I get the hint.”  
Jared shimmied out of his boxers without thinking, and gasped as the air hit his still-sensitive dick. Jensen had never seen him naked before, and there he was, standing with his privates hanging in the morning air. He covered himself with his hands, blushing furiously and stammering, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, just turn around,” as Jensen looked at him.  
“Are you okay?”  
“What? I’m fine. I didn’t mean to flash you, sorry,” Jared muttered, hopping into the shower and wincing at the water that hadn’t warmed up entirely yet.  
“Dude. You were just humping my leg in your bed and you’re worried about me seeing you?” Jensen sounded incredulous.  
“I don’t know!” Jared protested, cheeks flushing. “I just wasn’t sure…” He splashed water over his face and scrubbed his hair under the water.  
“Wasn’t sure of what?” Jensen pressed.  
“I wasn’t sure if you wanted to see me.” Jared blushed furiously, busying himself with his washcloth, wiping away the sweat and semen on his legs.  
“Jared.” Jensen said, suddenly serious, and then the shower curtain was swept aside.  
“Jeez, Jensen! Privacy!” Jared gasped, covering himself with the washcloth.  
“I think you’re a fucking knockout. Yes, I want to see you. Who wouldn’t?” Jared looked down.  
“Wait. Hold the fuck up. Has anyone else seen you like this?” Jared shook his head.  
“You’ve never done anything with anyone else?” Jensen asked. Jared blushed even darker. God, please smite me down where I stand, so I don’t have to tell Jensen that his whatever-I-am-to-him is a virgin, Jared prayed desperately. He looked up, anywhere but at Jensen.  
“Hey, hey, hey, look at me.” Jensen said softly. He tipped Jared’s head down with gentle fingers on his cheek. “Are you okay with what we’re doing?” Jensen’s eyes were huge with proximity, gold flecks shining amongst the green. “Jared? Talk to me.”  
“Yes, I’m fine!” Jared said. “I just didn’t know how to tell you…”  
Jensen snorted. “Tell me what? That you’re a virgin?”  
“Yes!” Jared snapped.  
“Dude, that’s not a problem. I can respect that.” Jared looked, bewildered, at Jensen as he sat back down on the toilet. “That’s fine, Jay. I don’t care. You don’t have to be ashamed of that.” Jared mulled that over as he shampooed and conditioned. He didn’t even think of the open curtain anymore. He called me Jay again, he realized with a jolt of glee in his stomach.  
“You’re sure?” Jared asked.  
“Yeah, definitely!” Jensen exclaimed. “And, just so you know, we don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. Just tell me no and I’ll stop. Okay?”  
“Okay,” Jared said. He stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his hips.  
“So are we good?” Jensen asked. He seemed genuinely concerned.  
“Definitely.” Jared smiled.  
“Good. Now, it’s my turn to shower.” Jensen stripped down without a second thought, tossed his dirty clothes on top of Jared’s, and hopped into the shower, singing softly. Jared shook his head and grinned as he brushed his teeth. 

Jensen checked the hallway before they left; to make sure no one was outside to see them leave together.  
“It’s not that I don’t want to scream to everyone that we’re a thing,” Jensen explained as they walked down the stairs. “It’s just that I don’t think Seb would approve of me being involved with one of the students.”  
“Student?” Jared asked.  
“Technically, you’re registered here for therapy and rehabilitation. Remember? You’re supposed to be the scary tall man who beat up three kids with his trusty sidekick, Stranger the Badass.” Jared snorted.  
“If I hadn’t gotten in trouble, I never would have needed to come here. I’m not a bad guy, honestly. I just needed to defend what I love.” Jensen nodded and walked to the stove as they entered the kitchen.  
“What do you want for breakfast?” Jensen asked.  
“Pancakes!” Genevieve chirped as she walked in behind Jared.  
“Morning, sunshine,” he said back. She grinned.  
“It’s going to be a good day,” she said. Jared looked at her quizzically. “Misha is going to start riding today.”  
“And that makes today a good day?” Jared asked as he filled the coffeepot with water, bending around where Gen stood in the middle of the floor. Eggs cracked on the counter where Jensen worked.  
“Yep. I want to see what he remembers. Pancakes?” She asked hopefully. Jensen snorted. “Try again on your birthday. Scrambled eggs.” She rolled her eyes and dug into the fridge for orange juice. Misha wandered in shortly after, followed by Sebastian.  
“We eat together?” Misha asked, confused.  
“Breakfast and dinner.” Genevieve confirmed. “Lunch, you’re on your own.”  
“What do we do in the meantime?” Misha’s voice was softer than it had been the night before, without all of the bitter edge that had made him seems so aloof.  
“We work in the barn,” Jared started.  
“We ride and Seb gives us lessons,” Genevieve continued.  
“And we try to learn more about and forgive ourselves,” Sebastian finished. He looked pointedly at Genevieve, then Misha, then at Jared. Jared raised his eyebrows as if to ask, “Me too?” Sebastian nodded emphatically. Jensen plopped a plate full of scrambled eggs with cheese, diced peppers, and tomatoes into the center of the table and ordered, “Eat.”  
Within thirty minutes, the eggs had been devoured and the plates rinsed and placed in the dishwasher. Misha had regained his slump and was slouched in his chair, watching Jared and Gen help Jensen clean up the remains of breakfast. Sebastian was working over papers with his reading glasses wedged onto the end of his nose. As the clatter in the room ceased, Sebastian stood up and deposited his glasses onto a clean counter space.  
“Riding lessons today. You too, Jensen.” Jensen’s eyebrows shot up.  
“I’m not a student here anymore!”  
“You’re always going to be my student.” Sebastian said calmly. “And you haven’t done any technically proficient riding in a long time. You need work.” Jensen groaned, but relinquished his tireless cleaning of the kitchen and left to don his boots. Jared and Gen followed suit.  
“So,” Misha started after he and Sebastian were alone in the kitchen.  
“So what?” The old teacher asked.  
“I don’t have boots or anything. I won’t be able to keep up in the lesson or whatever, either.” Misha sounded defensive.  
“It doesn’t matter. It’s not a competition. And I’m sure Jensen can lend you boots. Why don’t you go ask him?” Misha stood, unmoving, in the kitchen. Sebastian frowned. “Is there a problem?”  
“Why would he lend me anything?” Misha said gruffly, bright blue eyes glued to the floor at his socked feet. Sebastian’s face crumpled, concern flickering across it like a lightning strike before being followed by pity like thunder, and then by a smile.  
“Why wouldn’t he?” Sebastian responded softly. Misha’s eyebrows met in the middle and separated, and then he walked out. As he left, Sebastian could hear him call into the hall, “Uh, Jensen?” and smiled to himself again.

“Jared, for the love of God, heels DOWN!” Sebastian called across the sandy ring where Jared, Jensen, and Genevieve were trotting around the rails. Misha sat on the fence, almost close to Sebastian but far enough that he couldn’t be easily touched. “Posting, Jensen, I swear that I taught you how to do this when you were seven.” Jensen frowned and pushed himself out of the saddle to the beat of Gabriel’s hooves, settling into a soft up-down-up-down motion that flowed with Gabriel’s gait.  
“There we go,” Sebastian said approvingly. “Misha, why don’t you go tack up Michael?” Misha shrugged noncommittally, and didn’t move. “Do you know how to put a saddle on a horse?” Another shrug. No movement. “Jared,” Seb called. “Come here.”  
“No, thanks,” Misha said. “Not my thing. I don’t want to.”  
“Lies,” Genevieve smirked as she came around the turn and heard their conversation. “All lies.” She and Lion were working well together, listening to each other and communicating with their body language. Misha rolled his eyes, but hopped off the rail. “Fine,” he grumbled. Jared swung his leg over Stranger’s back and slid to the ground, boots causing puffs of sand to float around his feet.  
“Actually, I changed my mind,” Sebastian mused. “Gen, come here.” She turned neatly in a half-circle and trotted back towards them. Jared led Stranger back to the fence and mounted up. With a slight encouragement, Stranger regained his stride and kept close to the rail at a trot, mirroring Gabriel and Jensen around the ring.  
“Genevieve, please, would you show Misha how to tack up? Take Michael, I think.” She nodded an affirmation and gestured to Misha to follow her.  
“So when was the last time you rode?” Genevieve asked as they walked. Misha’s hands were shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans and his eyes were shifting from side to side, taking in everything about the farm around them.  
“Somewhere in my freshman year. It was just a trail ride at a campground. Nothing special. I stopped taking lessons in eighth grade.” Misha’s tone was indifferent, but his shoulders had tensed up when she probed into his past.  
“It’s a good thing you’re here then,” she said slowly. “You can ride as much as you want here.” The corner of Misha’s mouth quirked up quickly into a half-smile, but he smothered it before she could smile back.  
“That seems to be the only benefit to being sent out into the sticks,” he said.  
“Why were you sent here, then?”  
“My parents were sick of me not having friends.” Misha’s honesty surprised Genevieve. It surprised him, too. Misha thought, I don’t have to tell her any of this. Why can’t I stop talking?  
“Why didn’t you have friends?” Genevieve’s tone was casual, as if she weren’t talking about anything more interesting than the weather, but she kept a careful eye on Misha.  
“No one liked me. I’m kind of weird, in case you hadn’t noticed.” Misha’s voice had turned self-deprecating without a trace of humor, and Gen noticed that when he wasn’t snapping bitterly at people, his voice was slow and deep.  
“I hadn’t. You’d spent too much time being an asshole.” Gen couldn’t help herself. She watched to see if she’d pushed too far, and if Misha would close back up again, but he didn’t. He laughed halfheartedly to himself.  
“It’s self-defense. Don’t take it personally.” They reached the tack room, where Misha checked the list posted at the door and started to grab what he needed to ride Michael.  
“It’s like riding a bike, isn’t it?” Gen asked after a few seconds of bustling silence. Misha paused, his hands full of girths and saddle pads as he searched for the correct length, and considered what he was doing.  
“I guess it is,” he allowed, and smiled shyly at her. She beamed back. 

When he collected everything, Genevieve led Misha to Michael’s stall, where the friendly horse hung his head over the half-door. “Knock yourself out,” she invited, gesturing towards Michael. Misha gave her a quick questioning glance, but placed the pad, bridle, saddle, and girth over the door and offered his hand to Michael.  
“Hey, there,” he said quietly. Michael sniffed into his palm, hoping for a treat, and then allowed Misha to scratch gently on his cheek. Misha let himself into the stall, murmuring softly to Michael as he carefully arranged the pad and saddle, cinching it snugly around Michael’s stomach. He unclipped his halter and slid the bridle over his ears and clipped it under his cheeks. After he had double-checked everything, he turned to Gen.  
“Is this okay?” Misha asked. His blue eyes were wandering, not meeting hers, searching for approval that he didn’t quite dare to ask for. She slowly clapped, until Misha’s cheeks burned in a deep blush that made her realized how dark his hair was against his fair skin.  
“Perfect,” she announced. She let Michael and Misha out, Misha leading by the reins, and started to leave the barn the same way they came in. Halfway down the wide corridor, Misha stopped and handed the reins to Gen.  
“Who’s this?” Misha asked, walking towards Lucifer’s stall.  
“Don’t touch him- he’s nasty. Don’t get close enough for him to nip at you, either,” Gen warned, but she spoke too late. Misha was within Lucifer’s reach, and Lucifer poked his head out of the stall, ears laid flat against his skull. Misha stood with his hands in his pockets, staring unblinkingly at Lucifer.  
“You don’t scare me,” he told the horse. Lucifer tossed his head but retreated into his stall. Misha turned, taking the reins back from Gen.  
“What’s his problem?”  
“He was abused by a previous owner, we think. Ms. Padalecki took him in and cared for him. She was the only one who could ride him.”  
“I’d like to try.” Misha’s tone was determined.  
“I’d like to see that!” Gen laughed, but his steely tone surprised her. Maybe we’ll turn two lives around by the time he leaves, she thought. He’s just the kind of person to take Lucifer down. They arrived back at the ring in time to see Jared putting Stranger through his paces. They cantered around the ring to Sebastian’s shouted instructions, to hold Jared’s hands higher and his knees firmer, but there wasn’t much about his form to be improved. Horse and rider worked as a team, listening and responding to each other. Jared sat lightly in the saddle, holding tightly with his knees, and Stranger turned one ear back towards his rider, to hear his instructions and respond. It was a breathtaking sight, the tall, lanky boy and the huge black beast. Jensen’s eyes were glowing with appreciation, Genevieve noticed. Misha watched in admiration as well. After a minute, Jared slowed and trotted over to his audience.  
“How was it?” Jared asked breathlessly.  
“Just fine,” Sebastian said encouragingly. “Not that I would expect any less of a Padalecki.” Jared smiled and dismounted.  
“Someone else’s turn.” Jared said, and half-turned to Jensen and Gabriel.  
“I’ll go,” Misha offered, mouth speeding ahead before his mind could catch up. Sebastian’s eyebrows jumped into his hairline, and Jensen’s face was wiped clean with surprise. After a beat of shock, Sebastian recovered.  
“If you think you’re ready for it,” Sebastian offered, but Misha nodded strongly.  
“I know I can.” This new determination was shocking to the people around him. This ambition and drive was such a contrast to the sullen boy who had sulked around the house and land for the past week that it was hard to believe that it was the Misha they knew who stood here before them. Genevieve smiled at him. “Go kick some ass.”  
Misha mounted using the fence, swinging his leg gracefully behind him as he landed lightly in the saddle. He laughed a little, delight in his eyes.  
“Like riding a bike,” he said, locking eyes with Genevieve. She smiled at him and nodded. He turned to Sebastian. “What do you want me to do?” 

Misha’s style of riding was clean and technical. Someone had trained him hard, and trained him well, when he was a child. It was clear in the dignified way he held his head and the angle at which he kept his arms. He rode lightly, not pulling the bit in Michael’s mouth unnecessarily and speaking to him the entire time. Gen had a smirk on her face the size of Asia, and Jensen and Jared were in awe. Misha had severely underplayed his riding ability. Sebastian’s surprise was the greatest of all, however. Misha cantered towards them, posting easily in time with Michael’s gate, and slowed in front of Sebastian.  
“How did I do?” He asked. His hair was ruffled and his cheeks were pink, and he looked like a little boy instead of the robot he usually behaved like. Sebastian laughed. “Your riding is fine, boy. It’s just the attitude that needs work.” Misha rolled his eyes, but he didn’t seem too upset.  
“Where did you say you rode before you moved?” Sebastian asked.  
“With an old guy named Jeffrey Morgan,” Misha said. Sebastian laughed out loud.  
“I learned to ride with him when I was a child!” Sebastian chuckled. “The odds.” He shook his head and then glanced up at the sky. “Alright, pupils-,”  
“Pupils?” Jensen snorted.  
“Yes, pupils. Clean up, hose down, whatever you think your horses need. Do it and I’ll have dinner ready by the time you’re done.”

Dinner conversation was livelier than it had been in a long while. Misha was genuinely involved, and started to offer information about his life without being prodded. He sat next to Genevieve, who frequently turned to him to talk privately, and he smiled at her more than at anyone else. After more than one such occurrence, Jared and Jensen shared a private look. Do you think…? Jensen’s eyebrows asked. Maybe! Jared shrugged. They sat in comfort together after they had finished the meal, Misha and Sebastian sharing stories of Mr. Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who had left high school to become a cowboy and ended up becoming one of the most respected schooling teachers in the nation. After an hour and a half, Jensen and Jared started to remove dishes from the table when a loud rapping came on the door. Sebastian went to open the door, and from the front hall came the creak of hinges, a noise of surprise, and muffled, “It’s nice to finally meet the man.”  
Jared ran after Sebastian to see who had arrived, and was shocked to see his own father standing in the doorway.  
“Dad!” Jared called. His father opened his arms and grabbed his son in a bear hug.  
“Hey, son. How are you doing?” Gerald Padalecki was as tall as his son was, but wider in the chest. He shook everyone’s hand as he was introduced to Genevieve, Misha, and Jensen. Sebastian invited Gerald into the living room, where he was given a seat on the couch and a drink. Despite his age and size, he moved with grace.  
“So how are things here?” Gerald asked Sebastian.  
“Why don’t you let your son tell you?” Sebastian responded, gesturing to Jared. The conversation swam around Stranger, Lucifer, the new horses Gerald hadn’t met, and the business half of the farm before finally settling on Sharon. The night was cold and Jared was almost asleep, nodding off against the back of the couch between Jensen and his father, when Gerald cleared his throat and asked, “Are things much different without Sharon here?” Jared’s eyes flew open. Sebastian took a deep breath.  
“She was a natural at what she did. She had a gift that no one could replace or imitate. But I don’t need to tell you those things. She wasn’t in pain at the end, Gerald. She was mad as a bull to be leaving her kids, including Jared, but she wasn’t in pain.” Sebastian’s honest admission floated in the air, filling Jared’s ears like cotton. Including Jared, he had said. Jared didn’t like to think about it, but he had missed having a mother when he was growing up. He had known his mother was still alive, but she was so far out of his picture that he was hesitant to believe that she had ever really been in it. Jensen squeezed his leg surreptitiously, and Jared was glad for the support.  
“I’m glad,” Gerald said gruffly. “She was a tough old woman. I’m surprised to find that she was mortal, after all.” Seb laughed.  
“Me too, Gerald. Me too.” The room was growing cold as Gerald stood.  
“I should be getting back. I just wanted to say hello, really,” he said. Sebastian stood as well.  
“I won’t hear of it,” he said. “You’re staying here for the night. We have plenty of room. And I know it’s been forever and a day since you’ve been here.” Gerald smiled.  
“I appreciate it, Sebastian. Goodnight, all.” He hugged Jared, nodded at everyone else, and left, clomping up the stairs in his heavy boots. Jared sat back again, tired by the night’s events.  
“Did you know he was coming?” Jared asked Sebastian.  
“No idea,” the old teacher said, wiping a hand across his weary eyes. “Sharon always spoke so highly of him. No wonder they were such a pair.” Shortly after, the call of sleep was too strong for anyone to resist, and they trooped up to their rooms for the night. Jared was in the bathroom after Sebastian had used it (seniority, Sebastian had said) when Jensen walked in and shut the door, sitting on the closed toilet seat.  
“So?” Jensen prompted.  
“So what?” Jared gargled back through a mouthful of toothpaste.  
“So what do you think of your dad being here?”  
Jared shrugged. “It’s nice. I’ve missed him. And now that he’s here, I’m going to ask him about why he and my mom got divorced. It’s about time I knew.” Jensen nodded. He sat for a moment longer, then kissed Jared lightly on the mouth and left to go to sleep. There’s another thing, Jared thought. I want to talk to Dad about Jensen. He finished up in the bathroom, collected his toiletries, and dropped into bed. He was asleep almost instantly.

Breakfast that morning was a busy affair. With Gerald in the house and Misha’s newfound chatter, the kitchen was full of voices and laughter. Gerald insisted on cooking, to thank them for their hospitality, and graced everyone with the best omelets ‘this side of the Mississippi’, as proclaimed by both of the Padaleckis. Jensen and Misha had to agree. The large table was crowded with coffees, plates, fruit, toast, and eggs.  
“Gerald, if you’re going to be here for today, why don’t you help me out with some of the business things I need to get to? Sharon had a better head for it than I do, but she said that was what you did when you were here.”  
“Sure, definitely. I just want a little time to wander and remember the farm first, though. Jared, why don’t we take a walk?” The question was innocent enough, but Jared could feel his friends’ eyes on him as he stood.  
“Okay, let me just clean up,” he said as he carried his dishes to the sink. Wiping his hands on the towel and leaning against the counter, he surveyed his father, who watched him with clear eyes. Jared followed Gerald out the back door and to the barn as the screen door swung shut with a bang behind them.  
“So how have you been, Jared?” Gerald asked, eyes crinkling into a smile. Jared found himself smiling back. “Things have been great, Dad. I really like it here.”  
Gerald sighed. “I wish you could have grown up here, son.”  
“Then why didn’t I?” The question slipped out before Jared could stop it, and it hung in the air, unwelcome and unanswered. Another heaving sigh, and then Gerald rubbed his hand over his hair. “I guess you’re old enough to know the truth.  
“Your mom and I were very happy here. This is what she had wanted to do since she was around your age. When we met in college, I knew that she was the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. She was fire and spunk and ambition, and all for this farm. She wanted to help the kids who were like she had been when she was younger.”  
“Mom was, uh, behaviorally challenged?” Jared asked, surprised. All the stories he had heard of his mother as of yet painted her like a saint.  
“To the highest degree. She ran away from home so many times, and she and her parents would fight something awful. She changed in college, though. She didn’t have anything to run away from anymore. We dated, married, opened up the farm. Then we had you, Jared.” Gerald ran a hand over Lion’s door, allowing Lion to smell his palm before walking on. “You were the perfect baby. You had no fear of horses whatsoever. Then her parents came to visit us.” Michael and Gabriel were both greeted by Gerald as well, welcoming him with gentle horse kisses. Gerald was a natural around horses, and time hadn’t dulled his sense of how to behave with them. “Her parents thought that the horses were going to kill you someday. You had toddled into a paddock. Your mom’s horse was in there, Josephina, and you would have been fine. She would have kept you safe. But your mom’s parents… They don’t, or didn’t, understand how horses worked. Fina stayed around you, and they thought she was going to step on you. Her parents and your mother fought something awful, and one day they fought next to the paddock. Her father was yelling at Sharon for something, and Fina got protective. You were standing there by your mom, in the grass of the paddock, and when Fina came over your grandfather shouted at her and she spooked. She stumbled into you. It broke your leg, but you don’t remember that. They left that night, threatening to call social services. I had to take you away, or they would have taken the farm away from Sharon. Her parents threatened me, told me I had to keep you away from the farm, and I had to stay away from their daughter. They hated me, Jared. They didn’t even come to our wedding.” Gerald wiped a tear that had fallen off his face. He paused in front of Lucifer, but didn’t offer a hand. The next stall over, he gently rubbed Titania’s face, speaking softly to her. “I had to keep you far away. But Sharon and I kept in touch. She sent you Stranger when you were three. Stranger is born of Fina, actually. He was her only baby. But I could never bring you back here. It wasn’t even that her parents cared so much for you. They barely knew you. They just hated everything your mother did. She symbolized their failure as parents. And now they’re gone and your mother too.” Gerald’s voice broke. Jared rubbed his back, and broke the silence.  
“I don’t blame you, Dad. I know you were just trying to keep me safe. And I’m not mad, or anything. I’m just glad you finally told me.”  
Gerald’s breath came in short, choked bursts. “I was so afraid you would think I was weak, because I ran from my home and my wife. I was terrified of having you taken away from us. Sharon and I agreed it would be best.” They stood together, father and son, no more lies or secrets, in front of Stranger’s stall. The large black horse huffed happily onto Gerald’s shoulders, in eager recognition of a familiar face. Gerald rubbed a wrinkled hand over Stranger’s face, murmuring to the horse.  
“But what else do you like about it here?” Gerald asked, after a moment.  
“I like the people,” Jared said immediately. Gerald cast him a side glance.  
“Yeah, that Genevieve girl is a knockout,” he said slowly. Now or never, thought Jared.  
“Jensen’s better, though.” Jared’s voice squeaked on the last word. His father had known about Jared’s preferences, since the night the boy was fifteen and came home from a sleepover with a new friend with hickies spiraling over the back of his neck, but they had never discussed it and Jared had never met anyone he wanted his dad to meet.  
“He is a very good-looking man,” Gerald agreed. They stood in silence, until Gerald asked, “So are you…seeing each other, or what?” Jared deliberated for a moment.  
“I guess you could say that.” Jared offered. He had never really though about what Jensen was to him, besides mine.  
“I’m glad you’ve found someone, then, Jared. He seems like a great guy. Good with horses too, according to Sebastian.” In Gerald’s book, if a boy was respectful and good around animals, he was good enough for his son. Jared sighed internally with relief.  
“Thanks, Dad.” They moved on to Raphael, who stood quietly as Gerald introduced himself.  
“Lucifer was your mom’s horse?” Gerald asked.  
“I don’t know about hers, but she was the only one who could ride him,” Jared said. Gerald smiled, a crooked and nostalgic grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes.  
“Your mother…was the angel of horses. She could have tamed a lion, if the lion had a horse’s heart.” He nodded back down the hallway to Lucifer. “She could have turned him into a lapdog, if given enough time.” Jared inclined his head.  
“I’ve heard. She was the best, I think.”  
“The very best. I think you’ve got her gift, though.” Gerald regarded his son with pride. “Let’s go in, huh? I have to talk business with Sebastian.” 

For once, there was nothing to be done that afternoon after Gerald and Sebastian locked themselves into the office and left them all to their own devices. Misha and Genevieve were sprawled in the living room, playing cards on the wooden coffee table, and Jensen and Jared were in the kitchen, sitting in the wooden chairs and sharing stories they hadn’t yet told each other. It was almost five when Jensen’s stomach rumbled loudly.  
Jared laughed. “Is there anything you’d like to share with the class?” He teased. Jensen rolled his eyes, and then his expression visibly brightened.  
“We should go out.”  
Jared was bemused. “Aren’t we already doing that?”  
“Jay, we never leave the farm! When was the last time you saw a human being who doesn’t live here, besides your dad?”  
Jared thought back, and was shocked to realize that Jensen was right. He had been working on the farm for over three months, and not once had he ever thought of leaving, not even for a little bit. “Maybe that would be fun,” he allowed. “Are we allowed to leave?”  
“Yeah, dude. You thought we were keeping you here against your will? The only one who wouldn’t be allowed out is Misha, and even he could probably leave, with all the progress he’s made.” Jensen shrugged. “There’s a really great little diner in Hinckley, if you want to grab dinner.” Jared considered, and smiled.  
“That’d be fun!” He stood, cracking his stiff joints.  
“I’ll ask Seb, and Misha and Gen if they want to come, and then we can head out.” Jensen wandered to the office and rapped sharply on the wooden door. Sebastian poked his head out. He and Jensen had a flurried conversation, and then Jensen shot Jared a thumbs-up. Gerald appeared behind Sebastian, handed Jensen some folded bills while holding a drink in his other hand, and shooed Jensen away.  
“I need to finish getting to know a new friend. He’s filling me in on everything I’ve missed,” Gerald stated. “Go have fun, kids.” He and Sebastian disappeared back into the room as the door shut behind them. Jensen raised his eyebrows at Jared, but he just shrugged.  
“Do you guys want to come? We’re grabbing dinner.” Jensen inquired of Misha and Genevieve, but only Genevieve looked up from the game of chess they had started.  
“We’re fine, thanks! You two go have fun.” She waggled her eyebrows suggestively. Jensen flipped her the bird and dragged Jared out the front door by his wrist.  
“How are we getting there?” Jared asked as he caught up to Jensen, trotting down the front steps. Jensen pulled the keys to a vintage car out of his pocket.  
“Sir Sebastian only travels in style.” He led Jared to a sleek and jet-black Chevy Impala and courteously opened the door for Jared. “In you go,” he smirked, closing the door behind him. He slid into the driver’s seat, and smiled as the engine roared to life. “She’s a beauty,” Jensen marveled. “Seb’s had this car for as long as I can remember.” Jared nodded his agreement, as Jensen shifted the car into first gear and the long car rumbled down the drive.

Jensen’s favorite restaurant in Hinckley turned out to be a classic-style diner named Ruby’s. A large black woman who wasn’t named Ruby ran it, and she berated him for not coming more often as soon as he walked in with Jared in tow.  
“Jensen, you have got some nerve showing up here.” She shook a menu at the pair of them and led them to a booth. “You came here for lunch almost every day during the summer, and then you don’t come at all. Are you trying to tell me that you don’t like my cooking anymore?” She stood in front of their table with her hands on her hips until he shamefacedly asked for his usual, and Jared ordered the same without knowing what he was asking for.  
“You’re in trouble,” Jared teased as soon as the woman had left. Jensen sat back in his seat and groaned. “Don’t I know it,” he grumbled. “You’d think that she didn’t have any other customers by the way she treats me.”  
“Don’t even pretend like you don’t like it,” Jared smirked. Jensen rolled his eyes and smiled, nodding. “So, also, what did I just order?”  
“Only the best burger in Utah, my friend. I promise you that it’ll be worth it.” They sat and talked while they waited for their food, not noticing the others in the diner. A man passed by the window of the diner, paused, and kept moving. Their burgers were delivered, and Jared had to agree that it was the best burger he’d ever had. Slices of avocado, despite not being in season, were smothered in pepper jack cheese and onions. The bun was thick and toasted to a crisp, and Jared had a hard time getting his mouth around the entire thing. Jensen surreptitiously wrapped a foot around Jared’s ankle, tugging gently, and laughed softly when Jared blushed furiously. “What?” Jensen asked innocently when Jared locked eyes with him. Two can play this game, he thought. “Nothing at all,” Jared said, just as sweetly. He picked up his drink and wrapped his lips around his straw, sucking down water like a dying man. He watched as Jensen’s eyes dropped to his lips and stuck there, then traced the muscles standing out in his neck as he drank down what was left in his glass. Jensen laughed and shook his head.  
“What?” Jared asked, mocking Jensen. Jensen smiled, and took a big bite of burger, letting the juices from his burger run partway down his chin, before wiping it off with his finger and sucking it off almost pornographically. Jared groaned, knowing he would never win this game against Jensen and his angelically beautiful face. Jensen smirked and wiped his hands off with a napkin. “And that’s how it’s done, folks,” he said conversationally. Jared rolled his eyes. The large black woman, whose nametag read Missouri, stopped by and left the check on the table. “You be nice,” she warned, pointing with a roll of silverware at Jensen. He widened his eyes dramatically, asking, “Who, me?” She smacked him over the back of the head with a menu and moved on to another table. Jared reached for the check, but Jensen smacked his hand away.  
“Hell no. I’m paying.” Jensen announced over Jared’s protests. “Since Genevieve and Misha aren’t here, I’m considering this our real first date.” Jared’s argument died away in the air.  
“A date?” Jared asked dumbly.  
“Yes, you moron. I took you out to dinner. This is a date.” He stuck a bill into the check envelope and propped it open on the table. “Besides,” Jensen winked. “It was your dad who gave me the money anyway.” They left after Missouri took the check, roaring away in the stylish muscle car, laughing together all the way home. 

Alan Ackles sat in his car, fuming with anger and more drunk than he’d ever been before, which was an Olympic accomplishment. His son had betrayed him, and taken three of the most expensive horses that he’d ever bought with him. His former employee had lied to him, and he was going to exact his vengeance.  
“I’ll make him wish he had never seen a horse,” Alan vowed, not specifying whom he was going to punish. The image of his son, sitting across from another man and laughing without a care in the world, was burned into his mind.  
“How dare he?” Alan growled to no one. His hands slid over the dashboard, fumbling for the key clumsily before turning it in the ignition, bringing his rented car to life. “I’ll show them…” He drove towards the farm, revenge on his mind and murder in his heart. In the trunk of his car was an extra cannister of gas, placed there by some well-meaning person, and he knew where he could find matches. 

Misha and Genevieve were in the barn, scrubbing down the saddles in the tack room just to have something to do. They talked as they worked, Misha confessing his sins of partying, of lying, of lashing out at the people around him in his anger and loneliness. Gen countered with her tales of things she’d stolen and gotten away with, culminating in the car she had stolen out of the parking lot of a five-star restaurant. Their hands occasionally brushed as they worked, and Misha was surprised to find that he was longing for more than an accidental touch, and that she hadn’t flinched away. Genevieve was thinking the same, of his dark hair and the eyes that brought light to his entire face.

Gerald and Seb were laughing in the office, sitting across from each other on leather chairs and wiping tears from their eyes. “Sharon was spitting mad, but I couldn’t stop laughing,” Sebastian chortled. Gerald howled with mirth.  
“I can imagine!” He choked out. Alan stopped at the door, listening to their happiness, and a fire unlike any he’d ever felt before lighted itself in his stomach, born of rage and betrayal. He swept through the kitchen, grabbing a pack of matches from the drawer next to the fridge and carrying the can of gas in the other, and launched himself into the night and towards the large wooden barn. 

The first thing Jensen noticed when he and Jared arrived home was that the front door was open. He nodded to it, bringing it to Jared’s attention.  
“Is that normal?” Jared asked, concern drawing his eyebrows together. Jensen shook his head. Jared pushed his way out of the car, noting the unfamiliar sedan parked next to Gerald’s truck, and then followed Jensen up to the house.  
“Hello?” Jensen called. He could still hear Gerald and Seb talking behind closed doors, but he noted that there was a draft of cold air floating through the house. “Jensen?” Jared half-shouted. Jensen ran to the kitchen, seeing immediately that the back door was open. A strange and abstract light was coming from outside, one without a visible source. Jared dashed back in through the open door. His voice rose to a shout. “Jensen, get my dad and Seb! Now! The barn is on fire!” 

The door to the barn swung shut just as the grass in front of it ignited into flames. Alan’s face was shimmering with sweat, and the can in his hand was a little lighter than it had been. One match from his pack was lying in the grass outside, burning with the dry grass. He heard voices coming down the hall towards him, and on instinct looked to the wall for a switch. He flicked the lights off, and listened as two voices approached.  
“Misha? Did you do that?”  
“Not funny, Gen. Where’s the wall?” Alan listened as their footsteps approached, then lashed out at where he thought one of the people coming closer was. His elbow collided hard with a soft nose that crunched nastily on contact.  
Genevieve screamed.  
“Gen?” Misha’s voice was panicked now. “Gen, where are you?”  
“Misha, RUN! Someone’s here!” Her voice was thick with the blood that was running down her face from her nose. Alan moved silently away from where he thought the boy was, and moved on. He waited until he was ten steps away and could hear Misha fumbling in the dark for whoever Gen was, and then started pouring the gasoline again.  
“Wait-,” he heard Misha say, and then recognition and horror bloomed in his voice as he registered the soft trickling noise. “NO!” Misha’s footsteps came in his direction, and Alan was struck down by the body weight of a tall and muscular young man. He heard Gen running in the opposite direction, and then light illuminated the barn again. She screamed as she recognized him, and he her.  
“I knew you were hiding my son!” Alan shrieked, drunk beyond belief and slurring. “You fucking bitch, I knew he was here, I knew he stole my horses!” He looked around wildly, and found Gabriel in his stall. “He’s mine, that one is mine!” Alan threw Misha off of him, sending him colliding into the wall and sliding down into a crumpled heap. He kicked the gas can over, sending it spraying everywhere, and fumbled on the ground for the matches. “I’ll meet you in Hell!” Alan promised, and dropped the flame.

Jared, his father, Sebastian, and Jensen hurtled towards the barn, armed with fire extinguishers and a hose that was connected to the house. They did their best to put out the fire in front of the barn, stomping out the smaller flames, but the inferno had spread to the roof and was devouring the hay in the loft.  
“Where are Misha and Gen?” Jensen screamed. Sebastian gestured to the barn, eyes wide.  
“How did this fire start?” They managed to put out as much of the fire as they could, and together Gerald and Jensen hurled open the barn door. A blast of heat rocketed out, sending them flying backwards. As oxygen flew into the barn, the fire inside roared to the roof, the flames on the ground crawling up the walls and posts to meet the ones incinerating the upper levels. The sight that greeted them inside was one straight from a nightmare. Alan Ackles was roaring with laughter, hands covered in gasoline and almost on fire himself, Misha herding Titania out into the clear air, and Gen was nowhere to be seen. Gabriel and Raphael cantered out into the night, blowing by the four dumbfounded men.  
“ACKLES!” Sebastian screamed, voice cracking as he tried to head into the fray. Gerald grabbed him by the back of his shirt.  
“Help to put out the flames!” Gerald cried. He pointed a fire exinguisher he had grabbed off the wall at the nearest fire, and blasted it with white foam. Lion was next to fly out of the cloud of smoke, eyes wild and rolling around in her head as she reared. Sebastian got a hold of his emotions and snapped to command.  
“Lion!” He called, using hand signals. He gestured for Lion to walk on, to leave the fire and the fear behind. She trotted out, following the sounds of her barn-mates out in the grassy open area. Misha finished leading Titania out and ran back in to help. Jared and Jensen followed him in.  
“No, Jared!” Gerald screamed as his only son ran past, but Jared was deaf to his pleas. Where is Stranger? He thought wildly. He traced Misha’s footsteps into the smoke, grabbing the back of his shirt to keep his way. He could feel Jensen grabbing the back pocket of his jeans. Jared ran his hand along the wall with his eyes closed against the smog, feeling for a stall. He reached an opening, where a half-door was, and felt a pair of soft lips rub over his hand. He found the latch and flung it open, and heard hoof beats echo past him and out into the night. Michael, Jared realized. Another stall was brutally opened, and he heard another horse canter past, then wheel around. A huge, familiar head nosed at his arm, pulling gently at his sleeve.  
“Jared, Jensen, leave! I’ll find Gen! Get Stranger and go!” Misha’s voice floated out of the darkness, and Jared forced his eyes open. He immediately realized that was a bad idea. The smoke blinded him, burning his eyes and drying them out.  
“Jared, there’s nothing we can do.” Jensen’s rough voice, gruffer than usual from the smoke choking him, came from the other side of Stranger. Jared could feel tears pooling in his eyes, and not only from the pain of the smoke.  
“But Misha-,” he started, but Jensen cut him off.  
“He’ll get out. We have to go help Seb and your dad stop the fire!” Jared realized Jensen’s logic and turned, unsure of where to go. Stranger nipped at Jared’s hand, and then Jensen’s, and started walking. Fifteen years of companionship and trust took over, and Jared laid his hand on Stranger’s wide back and walked alongside him with his eyes shut tight. He felt Jensen’s hand join with his on Stranger’s coal-black hair, and allowed his horse to lead him out into the cleaner air.  
“Oh, thank God,” Gerald cried as he saw his son walking out of the impregnable cloud. He wielded a hose like a sword, spraying anything on fire, including Alan.  
“Where are Misha and Gen?” Sebastian called to Jensen, spraying into a stall with an extinguisher. “We called the fire department, they should be here any minute-,” he added. Jensen shook his head slowly and Sebastian dropped his arm.  
“Misha went back for Gen and told us to leave. I don’t know where Lucifer is.” Jensen’s voice cracked, and tears flowed unchecked down his face. “Seb, I am so, so sorry.”  
“Stop that, right now.” Sebastian commanded. “I am not taking any of your self-pity shit. In no way was it your fault. So go get the horses into a paddock far from here, and then come back.” Jensen turned, dropping his hand from Jared’s and heading out into the yard, when two things happened simultaneously.  
First, the fire trucks of Hinckley, Utah wailed their way into the yard, scattering terrified horses into dark corners with their lights wailing, with men jumping from the truck and unloading a giant hose. Within a minute they had set up a cherry picker, and were spraying high-pressured water into the loft, soaking all the dry and burning hay.  
Second, a shadow darker than the rest of the cloud solidified in the smoke, and grew larger as it approached. Seb, Gerald, Jared, and Jensen stood in absolute awe as an insanely convoluted mass of bodies emerged from the flames still eating the back of the stable. Lucifer, white coat stained with ash, struggled under the weight of the two people astride his back. Genevieve was lying facedown across his girth, blood dripping from her nose and a cut on her forehead onto Lucifer, and Misha sat astride Lucifer, coughing into Lucifer’s mane and stabilizing Genevieve with a protective hand.  
“I had to find her,” he wheezed as Sebastian reached out to support Misha as he toppled from Lucifer’s back. He pulled Genevieve down gently into his arms, cradling her as they slid into a puddle on the ground. He hacked up a cough that sounded like it would remove his lungs and whispered painfully, “She was my first friend.”  
Paramedics rushed to them, lifting Genevieve out of Misha’s arms and then carrying Misha himself to an ambulance that had parked itself behind the fire trucks. Gerald and Sebastian were wrapped in blankets and parked in the ambulance, while medics ran back into the barn to find Alan. They carried him out, but covered his face with a blanket and laid him beneath the open sky. Jared and Jensen led the horses to a paddock and stood next to the frail and broken shell of Alan Ackles in silence.  
“I’m sorry, Dad,” Jensen muttered. Jared squeezed his hand and watched as the moon traveled across the inky sky.

The emergency response team had left by three AM, and left behind a broken family and a smoking barn. Gen was tucked into her room after declared out of danger, and Misha sent himself to bed after she had fallen asleep. The smell of smoke still permeated the air, and the blackened grass had been trampled everywhere, including into the house. Gerald, Jared, Jensen, and Sebastian sat in muffled silence in the living room, everyone lost to their own thoughts. Jared and Jensen held hands unashamedly, Jensen needing the comfort as he mourned his father and considered his future.  
“Can we recover from this?” Jared heard Sebastian ask his father. Gerald didn’t seem to notice his use of the word ‘we’ and not ‘you’.  
“It’s hard. But not impossible.”  
Jensen stood abruptly later, as the night dragged on. “I’m going to bed,” he announced, and then left. Jared sat for a moment before excusing himself as well. He let himself into Jensen’s room without knocking, and sat on the side of Jensen’s bed in the darkness. Jensen’s breathing was labored and short, just shy of a full sob.  
“Jensen?” Jared asked cautiously. Jensen sniffled, and then rolled over to face the wall. Jared kicked off his shoes and slid under the covers, wrapping himself around Jensen. His bare skin was hot against the cotton of Jared’s t-shirt. Jared kissed the back of Jensen’s neck and whispered, “It’s going to be okay.” He felt Jensen’s shoulders collapse, allowing the strain of staying strong to crush him as he rolled over in Jared’s arms. The older boy buried his face into Jared’s neck and bawled like a child for his lost family and his fear, for his guilt and doubts and shame. Jared stroked a loving hand over Jensen’s soft hair, soothing him with words of comfort and support. After an unbearable amount of time, Jensen’s breathing slowed and calmed down, as he slipped into sleep. Jared fell asleep shortly after, still cradling Jensen in his arms. 

Breakfast the next morning was stilted and silent, a sharp contrast to the easily familiarity that had warmed the house the previous day. Genevieve was silent and unsmiling, so different from her usual self. Jared had never seen her without her characteristic smirk, and was discomfited by her solemnity. She sported two black eyes that nearly swallowed her face, and her nose was swollen beyond comprehension. Misha stayed glued to her side, pouring her coffee and constantly analyzing the stitches marring the skin of her forehead, gauging her pain level, and watching for any sign of discomfort. Jensen kept his eyes down, pushing his food around his plate. After half an hour of this, Sebastian cleared his throat and stood at the head of the table, gazing at his students.  
“Look, everyone,” he sighed. “I know that last night was a travesty none of us had expected to ever occur. We had no idea that Mr. Ackles was in the area, and obviously no one thought he would burn the barn down. But we all survived. We’re all okay. And I am not going to let this situation worsen. The farm is going to keep running, we’re going to keep taking boarders, and we’re going to start giving non-therapeutic lessons to help raise money to rebuild what needs to be rebuilt.” Jensen looked up, green eyes glazed over. Genevieve was staring at Sebastian, fighting to keep her eyes trained on him, despite the copious quantities of pain medication that had been pumped into her system. “We are stronger than this. We survived when Sharon died, and this is just another trial. I am not going to give up. Who’s going to stay and fight for this with me?” A deafening silence echoed through the kitchen as the last of Sebastian’s words faded away. Hurt stole into his eyes, pulling his eyebrows together as he bit his lip. It was Mr. Padalecki who broke the silence.  
“If you’ll take me, I’ll stay with you.” His voice shook with emotion, but Gerald’s eyes were clear. Seb nodded sharply and let out his breath.  
“Thank you, Gerald. This means a lot to me.” Genevieve stood up next, supporting herself on the table. Misha jumped to his feet, steadying her carefully.  
“You can’t get rid of me that easily.” Her mouth quirked up into a pained smile, but it reached her eyes. Misha looked from Genevieve to Sebastian and sighed.  
“I still have three months before I’m even allowed to leave, so I guess I’m stuck here.” He heaved an even bigger and faker sigh and rolled his eyes, but he successfully broke the tension. Jensen and Jared stood simultaneously.  
“My dad is here. I have no where else to go.” Jared said simply. He smiled at his dad, who grinned conspiratorially back. Jensen took a deep breath before speaking.  
“My instinct is to flee as far from here as I can, actually. My father almost ruined the only true home I’ve ever known, and I can’t tell you how sorry I am for bringing this on you.” Sebastian opened his mouth in protest, but Jensen held up a hand. “But I’m staying. Because this is the only home I know, and I have nowhere else to go. So if you’ll keep me around, I’d like to stay.” A beat of silence followed Jensen’s speech, and then Sebastian was vaulting around the table and pulling Jensen into his arms.  
“You stupid boy, haven’t I taught you anything? Haven’t I always told you that this is your home?” Jensen laughed, tears welling up in his eyes as he buried his face into Sebastian’s shoulder.  
“Yeah, well, I guess I’m just not the best student.” Jensen mumbled. Genevieve stepped forward too, wrapping her arms around Sebastian and Jensen.  
“You two took me in permanently when I didn’t have a single soul on the planet to turn to. This is where I belong,” she whispered. They let her into their circle and stood, swaying. Misha and Jared locked eyes, and then Misha shrugged. On that signal, they joined the hug, encircling their friends. Gerald was the last to glom on, but he did. He rested his head against Jared’s shoulder and breathed in deeply.  
“It’s good to be home.”


End file.
